Neverworld
by arpulver
Summary: Six years after their original victories, heroes from all six seasons are locked into a Digital World. Yes, they have to survive and fight evil forces threatening it, but the bigger challenge is living with each other, and co-existing as a group of teenagers with different backgrounds, too much free time, and no way out.
1. Prl- Twirling Towards Freedom

**Neverworld**

 **Author's Note**  
That's right, I'm back! This chapter is a short teaser prologue for my upcoming story Neverworld. Although this uses the dub names, terminology and characterization, all elements, including the undubbed seasons (and possibly tri. somehow), are incorporated. I'm not sure exactly when I will start posting, but I'm going to try to start out with a semi-regular schedule. None of this eight-chapters-over-three-years business. Seriously, who does that?

Episode one will have the full ownership/content/pairings disclaimer. You don't need that yet.

 **Transformative Works Statement**  
Any transformative works, be it art, music or spinoff stories, may be done without my permission so long as I am made aware of it by private message or e-mail. I am open to podfic, but please seek permission first.

 **Prologue**

Tai Kamiya turned on the lights of the sixth floor command center, sipping a cup of coffee as the overhead light bulbs ticked on to help the morning daylight and the bank of computer monitors illuminate the room. He wasn't usually the first one in, but he had trouble sleeping and woke up far earlier than he normally did. With any luck, it would be another peaceful day and he'd be able to sneak in a midday nap.

Days were usually peaceful in the Digital World, at least the surrounding parts. It hadn't always been that way, but hard work had forged a stable and calm territory. There were always little things popping up, like the day before when a threat of a turf war arose between a pair of Goblimon tribes. The seventeen-year-old digidestined and his comrades did everything they could to calm things down before anything got ugly. They were the mediators, peacekeepers and occasionally ass-kickers that maintained order. It was simple, it was comfortable... it was often boring, but Tai knew that was better than the alternative.

He took a stack of papers from the printer tray and sat down, sipping his coffee while skimming through the overnight data. Processing every minor detail wasn't his strong suit, nor was it his job, but Tai could always spot glaring disruptions that told him something interesting was happening somewhere. Today he was more interested in finishing his coffee. He leaned back in his chair to get the last few sips of caffeine down.

"You're up early." Tai smiled in satisfaction as he heard the voice. Really, that was all he wanted to hear.

"Thought I'd get an early start on the day," Tai replied, turning to the source of the voice. "Good morning, Thomas."

Thomas H. Norstein wasn't fooled. "Trouble sleeping, huh?" He took the printouts from Tai and carried them to one of the workstations.

Tai grumbled. "All that matters is that I got up before you for once."

As Thomas started poring through the sheets, he replied, "I've been up for two hours. Got in a round of sparring with Gaomon."

His one chance at upstaging the twenty-year-old blond dashed, Tai changed the subject. "Hey, I think we should send someone out to follow up with the Goblimon. Just to make sure neither side tries anything."

"I agree." Thomas nodded, writing down observations from the data. He turned a page and his eyes suddenly widened.

"Morning," said Izzy, sitting next to Thomas. "Anything interesting?"

Thomas wasn't quite ready to greet Izzy. "Tai, did you look through these?"

"I skimmed them," Tai replied. "Why, what's up?"

Thomas stood up and held a sheet at Tai. "You didn't notice this?" Outside of a header and footer, the chart was almost totally covered in black ink.

Tai stood as well. That was an earth-shattering level of activity, undoubtedly something massive.

Izzy raised an eyebrow at it. "Something like that should have triggered an alarm." He wheeled back to his station. "Better run a test to make sure they're working."

Thomas turned to his computer, trying to get more information on this disturbance. Tai faced the large window overlooking the nearby plains and forests. It had all the information they needed. "Uh, guys..." Tai said, gulping. "I think I found it."

Thomas and Izzy joined him. Izzy nodded slowly. "That will do it."

"What is it?" Thomas asked. It resembled a light blue beam in the distance, swirling around but fixed on one point out in the plains, and stretched forever into the air. "It's too stationary to be a data stream.

"Oh yeah, I guess you haven't seen it before," Tai said, continuing to stare at it. "It means we're getting some guests."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Tai and Thomas were in full scramble mode, pacing around a meeting room with Takuya, Takato and Kari. Davis charged into the room after them, looking around and frowning.

"I'm last again, aren't I?" he asked.

"You're not actually," Tai said. "Where the hell did Izzy go?"

"We only have a few hours before they arrive, so we can't wait. Let's at least get started with the routine operations," said Thomas. "We need someone to head out west and make sure the Goblimon are behaving."

"Aw, that could take all day," moaned Takuya. "Who'd pick up the new kids?"

"Dibs!" shouted Davis excitedly.

Thomas nodded. "Davis, you and Ken will pick them up. Yolei will go with you." He turned to Takato. "Takato, why don't you and Koji head out now to check on the Goblimon?"

Takato stood up from his chair and saluted. "Yes, sir!"

As Takato ran out, Tai kept pacing. "So that takes care of retrieval and testing. But we still have to show them around, explain what we do, feed them, find somewhere for them to stay..." He clutched his head. "Aw, that's gonna be a nightmare."

"There's probably a bunch of things we're forgetting too," said Kari.

The door flew open and Izzy marched in and slammed a bound manuscript on the table. He was out of breath, but exclaimed, "Found it!"

"Found what?" asked Kari, hovering over the book.

Between breaths, Izzy said, "Remember? We put it together after the debacle we had when the last group arrived." Takuya started paging through it. "It's a comprehensive sixteen-point checklist to integrate and initiate any new teams."

"Hmm... did we remember to put clothes on the list?" Kari asked. Everybody stared at her. "Everybody gets pulled from home in the middle of the night, so everyone shows up in their PJs. Maybe we should be prepared for once."

Izzy stared at her, then pointed at the book. "As I was saying, it's a comprehensive seventeen-point checklist."

Takuya flipped back to the front cover. "Why's it called the Fujieda Plan?"

Davis snickered. "Makes sense. When we kept forgetting stuff when the last guys got here, she did complain the most."

"So what does 'the Fujieda Plan' say about getting them clothes?" Kari asked, arms folded.

Snatching the plan away, Izzy pretended to search through it. "Uh... it says..." He kept up the charade until finally looking at Kari and shrugging. "Would you go around and pass the hat? See if anyone has clothes they don't wear anymore?"

Kari narrowed her eyes at him, but said, "All right. I'll start with hospitality." As she walked out, she added, "They have bigger hats."

* * *

Kari Kamiya knew that in the limited time before the new kids were scheduled to arrive, she would never be able to reach everybody she needed to get a useful sample of clothes. They had no idea how many would be arriving, much less their genders, ages or body types. Therefore only by hitting up everybody would they have a chance of being prepared. Kari handled it the only way she could: she delegated.

By the time Tommy Himi reached his own room after bothering everybody else on the route, he was ready for it to be over. "Boy, I didn't think we'd be done in time. That was rough."

"Look who's talking." For all of Tommy's complaining, JP was the one lugging the giant bag stuffed with donations. "Go get your stuff. I'll bug Koichi."

While Tommy entered the room on the right side of the hallway, JP knocked on the left door.

"Yeah?" asked Koichi.

"It's JP. We're taking up a collection for the needy. Would you care to donate?"

The door opened. Koichi looked confused. "You're doing what?"

"A bunch of new kids are showing up today. We're collecting old clothes so they aren't stuck in their nighties all day. Got anything you don't mind getting rid of?"

Koichi looked away, deep in thought. JP gave him plenty of time. "I want to help, but I don't know if I have... actually..." He walked over to his bed, grabbed a shirt on top of it, returned to JP and stuffed it in the bag. "There you go."

JP raised an eyebrow. "Uh... Koichi?" He pulled the shirt out and looked it over. "Weren't you wearing this shirt this morning?"

"Uh..." Koichi glanced aside. "Didn't suit me. Besides, you know how quickly the fashion trends change here."

"And since when have you cared about that?" JP held the shirt to his face and scanned it closely. Then he sniffed it.

Koichi winced. "Okay, that's a little creepy."

JP pulled his face away and squinted at Koichi. "Hmm... it smells... different. Like someone else wore it."

"You know what I smell like? Also a little creepy."

After one more sniff, JP said, "Smells like a girl was wearing this." He grinned. "Koichi?"

"Are you ready?" Tommy joined them, dumping a handful of old clothes in the bag.

JP handed him the shirt. "Tommy, smell Koichi's shirt and tell me what you think."

Tommy's eyes lit up after one sniff. "Koichi! When were you gonna tell us you had a girlfriend?"

"I, uh..." Koichi's blush was giving himself away. JP and Tommy leaned in closer. "Look, I was afraid of the cleaning girls finding out and I'm not sure I like you guys knowing about it either. I don't want to talk about it right now." He slammed the door closed.

"That made this whole damn chore worth it," JP said, smiling in satisfaction.

Tommy kept smelling the shirt. "Hmm... I was hoping I could figure out which girl it is. Smells familiar... but I can't say for sure."

JP frowned and snatched the shirt away. "Okay, now that would be creepy."

* * *

Takato Matsuki and Guilmon rode KendoGarurumon back to base, mission completed and ready to rejoin the chaos of a new team's arrival. Although they didn't have any trouble with the Goblimon, it was definitely worth the trip. There hadn't been any rumors of border skirmishes, but both sides were still itching to claim the disputed territory and knowing they were still being monitored would likely prevent any future violence. It went as well as either they or Koji could have hoped for.

By the time they arrived back home, Davis, Ken and their partners were outside waiting for word to take off. Imperialdramon, with his size and speed, was the preferred method of travel for any operations and the obvious choice to pick up the new kids. KendoGarurumon was never an ideal option, but worked out nicely here.

As Takato and Guilmon dismounted, Davis grinned at them. "Hey, how'd it go?"

"Great! And it looks like we got back in time too," said Takato.

While KendoGarurumon turned back into Koji, Ken asked, "Did you get there all right without us?"

"Yeah, it was a lot of fun actually." Takato turned to Koji. "I gotta ride you more often!"

Koji cringed, muttering, "Don't word it like that."

"Hey, Davis! Can we take off yet?" Veemon asked.

Ken answered instead, "We don't know exactly when they'll be here. It should be soon, but Thomas said not to leave until then."

"Plus we gotta take Yolei so she can do her thing," Davis said. "Where the hell is she?"

"Guys!" It wasn't Yolei running up to them. It was JP. He was out of breath by the time he reached them. "Oh man, this is big."

Takato's face lit up. "I know! New kids! I hope they have cool new abilities and stuff."

JP waved his hand. "No, no, not that. Koichi has a girlfriend."

"That's great!" Takato was somehow just as excited. "Who is it?"

"He won't tell us. We gotta figure out some way to get it out of him."

"Not that I want you guys interrogating my brother..." Koji said. "But it's pretty obvious what you need to do. Come on."

He started to walk away, stopping only when neither JP nor Takato followed him. "Hold on, what's your plan?" JP asked.

"We hang out with him like normal people. Meet me out back."

Grinning, JP replied, "Ooh, sneaky."

"Takato, find a soccer ball or something."

"But wait!" Takato's darted his head between Koji and the beam in the sky. "Don't you want to meet the new kids?"

"Aw, we'll see them later," JP said. "Besides, what do you care? You already have a girl."

Veemon chuckled. "In the end, that's what this is really about, isn't it?"

JP shrugged. "It's nice to get some new options. Especially if Koichi took one off the board." He started walking away. "Sure you don't want to find out who?"

Takato looked at the beam again. As he did, Guilmon followed JP. Takato chased after him, shouting, "Guilmon! You too?"

"I just want to play soccer," said Guilmon.

Takato shook his head and followed him out, still keeping an eye on the beam. It started to flicker. "Aw, and it's breaking up too!"

Takato may have been forced away, but Davis and Ken turned around. The beam was dissipating; the new team was landing.

Yolei rushed up to them, Hawkmon racing behind her. She shouted. "Sorry I'm late! We're clear for takeoff!"

"What took you so long?" Davis asked, fumbling for his D3.

She winked. "Just rehearsing our lines."

"That sounds dirty coming from you."

Davis and Ken held up their D3s in unison and, after a series of digivolutions, DNA and otherwise, Imperialdramon stood before them. Ken, Yolei and Hawkmon hopped on first, followed quickly by Davis, who admired the beast before giving the order to take off.

"Heh... let's see these new kids do this."

* * *

Izzy Izumi read through his list one last time. Thomas, Kari and now Jeri were with him at the command center, ready to help him check the boxes. Tai was present as well, but staring at the window and the team's future allies.

Jeri finished one of her reports: "The kitchen has updated tonight's service and everything's on schedule."

Izzy checked a box. "And after that?"

"They'll need to make some adjustments until the next shipment's in but there shouldn't be any problems."

"Thanks. I think you're covered."

She bowed. "Should I place the order for them now?"

"Let's hold off until we see how many we have. We'll have to wait to see what they want for clothes anyway." Izzy checked another box as Jeri walked out. "Speaking of which- Kari?"

"We did pretty well. They should all be able to find something," answered Kari. "They're downstairs. I'll take them there before starting the tour."

Izzy nodded, handing her the document. "There's some notes about the tour in here. What to cover... what not to cover."

"What not to cover?" Kari flipped through it, but couldn't find any examples. "What do you mean?"

"Yolei will handle the, uh... more sensitive topics with their leader. No sense upsetting the others."

Kari stared back at him with a frown, but ended up nodding. "I understand."

"They're here," Tai and Thomas shouted in unison. Kari turned around and put a pair of headphones on.

"Is Imperialdramon in transit?" Izzy asked.

"Affirmative," replied Thomas, still checking his monitor. "Six unrecognized humans detected."

"I'm not picking up any Digimon," Kari added. "Are you?"

"I'm not... that's curious."

While they sorted that out, Izzy joined Tai at the window. Tai didn't react to his friend's approach at first, but then said, "Well, this is it. One more team thrown into all this."

"At least we're ready for them this time," Izzy said. "But is it really all right to keep information from them? Shouldn't they know everything we do?"

Tai shook his head. "We spent all day bending over backwards to make them feel welcome. But either way they're going to be confused and scared and angry."

"Exactly. Wouldn't telling them what we know help?"

A faint smile formed on Tai's face. "I just want them to be comfortable right now. Welcome them into the family and make it feel like home. Let's show them how great we are and how nice life is here."

He exhaled once through his nose, that smile never fading. "They'll figure out the truth on their own."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 1: "We Have Arrived"**  
Mikey and his team arrives to meet their new companions. While Mikey shows off his team's unique abilities, Davis and Kari show his friends all the amenities of their new home. Mikey gets a different tour from Yolei, exposing some secrets about this world.

" _What do you expect from unsupervised teenagers with a lot of free time?"_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
This should give you a general taste of what to expect. Yes, it's in the Digital World and there will be plenty of adventure elements to it. At the same time, it's primarily about all of these characters from all of these seasons stuck together and the relationships that build between all of them. Random crossover pairings will happen (some are already in place when the story starts), though the more popular pairings in the fandom will be put through the ringer.

It's also worth mentioning that despite the dark undertones going on, there will be plenty of humor. While it will have some dark moments, it will not be nearly as intense as The Connection. I mean, Tai's alive and Takato and Guilmon are back together! What more do you want?

Full disclosure: this prologue was written well after the first few chapters. While it allows me to tie in some early story elements, it's best to think of the proper story starting with the first episode. The prologue is a bit light on some of the details of their base and their surroundings in order to preserve the "visuals" of the full reveal in episode one.

While reviews are always encouraged and helpful, there is a discussion thread for Neverworld in the Digital Connections forum here on . Please use this for any discussions or speculations, and especially for any questions you might have. There's a lot of history and elements to the world that will never end up discussed and I'd rather share them in a public forum than through private messaging.

For story updates, either use the story/author alerts on here or follow me on Tumblr as firstagent. My Tumblr page has all sorts of Digimon-related articles and links to the System Restore project, where I've gone back and reviewed every single episode of the series. Check it out!

1xOTZV44gJ0  
B00KROGJCW


	2. 01- We Have Arrived

**Disclaimer  
** This incorporates all of the seasons and all of the pairings. I own none of the seasons, but I'm claiming a couple of the pairings if it's all right with everybody. Knowledge of every season isn't essential (you may enjoy meeting some of these new faces), but there will be more surprises/spoilers if you're unfamiliar with Data Squad or Fusion.

This story includes mild violence, mild language, mild sexual situations and a dump truck full of suggestive dialogue. I can not stress enough that the characters are older. Not necessarily old enough to make _good_ decisions, but old enough to make decisions anyway.

 **Neverworld**

 _This song is for everyone who's been stepped over,_  
 _looked past, ostracized, diminished, forgotten._  
 _\- MC Lars, "We Have Arrived"_

 **Episode 1**

Mikey Kudo woke up face down in a grove, his head buried in the tall grass. He was almost positive he had gone to sleep in an actual bed, but if he were wrong he should have been face down in the sand. He was supposed to be in a beach house; failing that, a beach. He wasn't bothered by the uncertainty over where or when he had fallen asleep; it was a small price to pay for that kind of fun.

To think he had only come along because his high school's soccer club begged him. He had only been a part-time member, and had graduated earlier in the year, but the club's big plans to rent a house on the beach for the week of Marine Day were in jeopardy when a late cancellation almost made it unaffordable. His old teammates needed him. He wasn't going to turn his back on them.

The more he thought about it, the more certain he was that he had made it to bed that night. He remembered enjoying everything about the party- the food, the drink... the girls. He remembered trudging up the stairs at two in the morning, not sure if he was intoxicated by alcohol or just the moment. He remembered a fleeting moment of anxiety as he realized that the money he had invested in the trip was a bit more than he could actually afford and that he may not be able to eat once college resumed. He remembered shrugging off his worry; he'd figure it out later.

He rose, now realizing that he was not in a house, nor on a beach, nor even in the human world. The sky was cloudless, but pixelated in places, with little streaks of data flying across like jet streams. There were no floating zones in the sky, but it was clear where Mikey was.

"Is this... are we in the Digital World?" Ewan's voice was the first indicator that Mikey wasn't alone. He had companions. He had _his_ companions. Angie, Jeremy, Christopher, Nene and Ewan were all present and all trying to make sense of what was going on. His elation at seeing them all (it had been four years for some) was tempered by the fact that this was quite impossible.

"Where'd you guys come from?" Mikey asked.

Jeremy scratched his chest. "Bed. This is a dream, right?" He, Angie, Nene and Ewan were in nightclothes. Nene hastily hid herself from Jeremy before he realized this.

"Except I wasn't sleeping," said Christopher. "I was hiking in the Rockies. It's the middle of the afternoon."

"Lucky you," said Angie. Unlike Nene, she was not wearing a thin nightgown, but she was trying to conceal just how many kittens were on the shirt she had worn to bed. "Mikey, were you up?"

"Passed out with my clothes on," Mikey said, trying to laugh it off. Angie glared at him.

"We are in the Digital World, though, right?" Ewan repeated.

He finally got an answer. "No good! No good! We sure are!" It came from Damemon, inside Ewan's Fusion Loader. At this point, they all realized they had their Fusion Loaders with them. None of them had any reason to have their Fusion Loaders with them.

"Happy to see you again, Mikey, but why'd you drag us here?" Shoutmon asked.

"I didn't do anything," Mikey replied. "We haven't seen a Digimon in years. I thought we were done with all this."

"I see your fashion sense hasn't changed. New goggles?"

Mikey looked up and pulled a stray twig from the strap around his forehead. Shoutmon was right about that. In the same motion, Mikey tapped the lens and spun to face his former teammates. Suddenly they were his current teammates again.

"Okay, let's figure out where we are and what's going on. Nene, send the Monitamon to scout the area. Christopher, got any spare clothes with you?

Christopher eyed the giant hiking backpack he was wearing and nodded. Whatever was in it, it was bound to come in handy and he was probably hoping no one else had noticed.

"Find something for Nene and Angie to wear," Mikey commanded.

Nene smiled at Christopher. "It's appreciated." She dropped her smile and raised her Fusion Loader. "Reload- Monitamon! Look around for any-"

"Giant monster at two o'clock!" Jeremy's designation didn't do any good since they were all facing different directions, but his pointing steered everyone to the giant dragon Digimon that looked too large to be capable of flight. It was approaching them.

Christopher instinctively held up his Fusion Loader, ready to engage it, but Mikey held up a hand. "There's someone on it."

They were mere specks at first, but as Imperialdramon neared, they came into focus. There were three of them, all also in their late teens. One was a young man with straight blue hair, parted at his forehead. The lone woman's hair was purple, though her defining feature was her massive glasses. Between them, the goggle-headed boy instantly drew Mikey's eyes with his wry grin. All three wore conventional clothes, and the one with the goggles even wore a blue suit with matching slacks and a tie.

"Question is are they good or bad?" Ewan asked as Imperialdramon landed and the three disembarked. The girl had a Hawkmon by her side.

Mikey wasted no time in approaching them. "Are you all hunters? Or even generals?" he shouted at them.

The goggle boy turned to his cohorts, then back to Mikey. "We'll go with generals. Has a nice ring to it."

"It doesn't matter what we're called," the other boy added.

"Better yet, call me Davis! And this is Ken, and that's Yolei."

Jeremy jumped in front of Mikey. "Well whoever you are, I hope you're about to explain how we all go to sleep and-"

"And wake up here." Ken finished Jeremy's sentence, then continued: "And it's been six years since you finished your first adventure in the Digital World. And you're all confused why you're suddenly in here with your..." All he saw were Nene's three Monitamon. "Digimon?"

Shoutmon popped out of his Fusion Loader and into Ken's face. "Except this isn't the Digital World!"

"Their Digimon can be stored inside their digivices?" Hawkmon observed. "I'm not sure I'm all right with that."

"And I should know, because I'm King of the Digital World!"

Ken wasn't impressed. "You shouldn't assign yourself titles like that. Against a strong enough opponent, you'll find they're quite meaningless."

Mikey grinned and approached them. "No, no, he really is king! Hell of a fight, but he won the throne fair and square."

Ken looked down at Shoutmon. "I see... benevolent, I hope?"

"The benevolentest!" Shoutmon replied, flashing a smile.

Davis clapped his hands together. "Anyway, let's get you all back to base. You might feel better once you've seen our digs."

"You're not going to explain what's going on?" Angie asked.

"The truth is, we're a bit short of answers ourselves," Ken replied.

"We can't explain it, but we can make the best of the situation." Davis gestured toward Imperialdramon. "All aboard!"

Angie didn't move. She turned to Mikey. "What do you think?"

"Let's go with them," Mikey answered. "If they were trying to fight us, they would have already sicced the big guy on us."

Shoutmon chuckled. "Boy, would they have been in for a surprise."

Davis's grin widened. "You think?" He nodded at Imperialdramon. "This isn't even his final form."

Mikey and Shoutmon waited for the other five to board Imperialdramon. As they were about to jump on, Yolei draped an arm around Mikey's shoulder. "So you're the leader, right?"

"Gee, what gave him away?" Shoutmon joked.

"Oh, the goggles made it obvious. We need to talk privately. We'll catch up with your friends later."

Mikey looked back at his teammates aboard Imperialdramon. "Um... okay, I guess. This can't wait until we get to-"

"Nope. This is just for you. Let's take a walk." Yolei marched towards a thicket of trees, forcing Mikey to walk alongside her.

Angie was livid. "Where's she taking Mikey?!"

Davis told Imperialdramon to take flight before answering. "A few things she has to explain to the leader of the group. I'd do the honors but I gotta get you home."

"It's all legitimate. You can trust us," Ken added.

"Okay, so she's not just coming on to him or something?" Jeremy said.

"Oh, knowing her that's still a possibility," Davis replied. "Off we go!"

* * *

Several minutes into the hike, Mikey was pretty sure they were lost in the woods. The tree cover made it impossible to see Imperialdramon in the sky. Yolei and Hawkmon led him and Shoutmon into a small clearing, where he tried to catch sight of them. The pixels in the sky crackled.

Shoutmon groaned. "Okay, missy, if you're planning on killing us, pretty sure no one's finding the bodies out here so you might as well get it over with."

Yolei giggled and spun around. "You two are fun. Suddenly zapped into the Digital World for no reason and you still have a sense of humor."

"What part of that was funny?"

Hawkmon held up a wing. "No need to fear, Shoutmon, we just need a word in private with your team's leader."

Mikey folded his arms. "We've been walking for ten minutes and you haven't said anything. What's going on?"

"Okay, Mikey," Yolei said. She took a deep breath. "As you've probably guessed, this isn't the Digital World you're used to."

"So what, it's like an alternate Digital World?"

Yolei grimaced, struggling to find an answer. "We don't like to say 'alternate.' That implies that we know which world is the real one. We really hope it's not this one, but the more we find, the less sure we are."

Furrowing his eyebrows, Mikey said, "You're not from my world, are you?"

"Nope. Pretty much every time we get a new group, they have different experiences. And their world seems to play by different rules. The only thing we share is that we all had to save our own Digital World, usually alongside our real world."

"Our human world," Hawkmon corrected.

Yolei winced. "Sorry. Human world."

Mikey grinned. "Okay, that doesn't sound too tricky. You guys got to go home once you saved the world, right?"

"Well... I mean, kinda-"

"So let's save this one! Then we can leave!"

"Yeah!" Shoutmon shouted. "Find the big baddie and whoop his butt! And if you happen to need an experienced king to fill the void of power..."

"See, that's the thing," Yolei said, shaking her head. "We've been beating baddies since we've gotten here. They don't show up nearly as often now, and they're not as tough as they used to be. Yet we're still here."

Mikey and Shoutmon stared back. Come to think of it, that was an unreliable way to chart a path home.

"Now you see why we pull the leader aside." Yolei cast her eyes to the ground. "We're at a complete loss when it comes to finding a way out. Nothing's changed since I've been here."

"How long have you been here?" Mikey asked.

Yolei refused to look up at them. She swallowed a couple times. Hawkmon took her hand.

Then a rustle from the trees and a loud roar interrupted them. Yolei turned around so quickly she fell on her rear.

"What... what is it?" Mikey asked. A giant red monster stepped from the bushes, flames shooting out of its pores, luckily not setting the whole forest ablaze. It was humanoid and wielded a huge sword, which it pointed at Yolei.

"Friend of yours?!" Mikey shouted.

On the ground, Yolei trembled, but didn't move. "No! Not now! He just got here! EmperorGreymon, please!"

EmperorGreymon slowly stepped towards the humans. Mikey grabbed Yolei by the arms and pulled her behind a tree. "Don't worry, we'll take care of him." He stepped in front of her and whipped out his Fusion Loader. "Shoutmon! Ballistamon! Dorulu-"

"Uh, Mikey?" Shoutmon tapped his general's midsection. "They're with Jeremy and Angie now, remember?"

Mikey felt sick to his stomach. He turned to Yolei. "For the record, this would have been a lot easier if my friends were with me."

Yolei blinked. "Shoutmon combines with their Digimon or something?" Mikey nodded, still facing EmperorGreymon, who still approached.

Hawkmon patted Shoutmon on the shoulder. "I know your pain."

"Come out and face me like a true warrior!" EmperorGreymon yelled.

"Is he talking to me or you?" Mikey asked.

"I don't know, but why don't you field this one?" Mikey turned back in time to see Yolei raise her eyebrows at him. "Let's see what you've got."

Mikey took a deep breath, then said, "Well... we got a sword. Starmon! Pickmons! Digifuse!"

A number of reinforcements emerged from Mikey's digivice and combined to form the Star Sword. Shoutmon claimed it and, despite the massive size difference, charged right at EmperorGreymon... who swatted Shoutmon away with one swing of his own sword. Shoutmon crashed against a tree.

"Is that all? Pathetic!" EmperorGreymon continued to encroach Mikey. "What kind of hero can't even make his Digimon digivolve?"

"Okay, stop!" Yolei stood in front of Mikey, hands out. "He hasn't been here for an hour and his friends aren't here to help him! It's not his fault he isn't as strong as you. It's not his fight anyway!"

"Indeed!" Hawkmon jumped in front of Yolei. "If Shoutmon can't face you, then I will!"

"You can't!" Mikey shouted. "You won't stand a chance!"

"This would be your cue to run, Mikey!" Yolei replied.

"No way! I'm not turning my back on you!" Mikey stood alongside Yolei. He faced EmperorGreymon, but was not calling to him. "Shoutmon! I know it's been a few years, but you're better than this! I know you still have it in you! Now digi-!"

In that instant, OmniShoutmon rammed into EmperorGreymon, knocking him into several trees.

"Wow, that was fast," Mikey said.

"It may have been a while, but I know when I need to digivolve," OmniShoutmon said. "I did it while you two were trying to out-hero each other."

Mikey smiled at Yolei. "That was pretty brave of you."

Yolei blushed. "I have my moments."

"Really, Yolei?" Hawkmon clucked. "Who's the new kid here?"

The battle wasn't over. In fact, while OmniShoutmon was able to give EmperorGreymon a decent fight, it wasn't a winning one. None of OmniShoutmon's fire-based attacks had any noticeable effect on a warrior of fire. Eventually, EmperorGreymon seized the upper hand again. After pinning OmniShoutmon against a tree, he stepped back and prepared his Dragonfire Crossbow.

"Any more digivolutions, Mikey?" Yolei asked.

"No..." Mikey clutched his Fusion Loader. "I have more Digimon!" He held it out, then pulled it closer to him and paged through various screens. "I think." Suddenly, splitting up the army among his friends proved to be a disastrous move four years later. He was forced to settle for whatever was left, and shouted, "Puppetmon! Chibitortomon! Digifuse!"

The result was Puppetmon, mostly unchanged except for the head of his hammer, converted into an impenetrable carapace.

"More Digimon?" Yolei marveled. "How many do you have in there?"

"That was pretty much it, actually," Mikey muttered.

Puppetmon screamed and charged after EmperorGreymon, who turned and fired his Dragonfire Crossbow attack at him instead.

"Now!" Mikey shouted.

"Terrapin Pummel!" Puppetmon swung his hammer at the attack, which reflected against the shell and bounced straight back at EmperorGreymon, knocking him off balance and sprawling into the brush.

OmniShoutmon recovered and hovered above EmperorGreymon. "That's right! No matter how bad it gets, I'll always have friends around." He went into the motion for his finishing attack. "Now-"

"Wait!" Yolei interrupted him, sprinting across the clearing. "That's enough!"

"You sure?" OmniShoutmon turned to Yolei. "I don't think he's done bothering us."

As she reached the edge of the clearing, she stopped to catch her breath, then said, "No, I think he is." She peered inside. "You okay, Takuya?"

"Takuya?!" Mikey and OmniShoutmon both cried.

Where EmperorGreymon had fallen, there was now another goggle boy. He was maybe a year younger than Davis. Unlike Davis, he was sprawled out on the ground in exhaustion.

"Can we make a call to the bullpen?" he stammered.

"Are you all right?" Yolei asked, extending a hand.

Takuya took it and stood up. "I'm fine, but thanks for stopping it when you did. That last attack looked like it was gonna hurt."

By now, OmniShoutmon was back to Shoutmon, the rest of the team was back in Mikey's Fusion Loader, and Mikey was with Yolei. "What happened to the big guy?"

"Mikey!" Yolei grinned. "Remember when I said different worlds play by different rules? Takuya here turned into EmperorGreymon."

"And you apparently have a whole army in your pocket. Cool! Welcome aboard!" Takuya extended a hand.

Shoutmon folded his arms. "Uh... weren't we just fighting?"

"Just seeing what you're capable of. Call it a field test." With Takuya's hand still outstretched, Mikey shook it hesitantly.

"You could have just asked. I'm not opposed to posing for pictures as OmniShoutmon."

Yolei shrugged. "It works better if you think it's real. The last group to show up actually needs an emotional investment to digivolve."

Takuya rubbed his jaw. "Yeah, he, uh... Marcus caught me off guard."

Out of nowhere, Mikey asked Takuya, "Have we met?"

"Uh... no? If you fight like that all the time, I would have remembered you."

"Weird... because I could swear I've seen you turn into a Digimon before."

Takuya didn't answer. Yolei sensed things getting awkward. "Okay... uh, maybe we should start heading back? I'm sure you're just confusing him for someone else... that turns into a Digimon."

"So how do we get back?" Shoutmon asked. "Or do we have to wait for the next giant dragon to pick us up?"

Yolei grinned and pulled out her D3. "That's where I come in!"

* * *

Imperialdramon had only been in the air for a few minutes, and that was enough for Jeremy, Angie and Ewan. They weren't used to traveling like this. Nene enjoyed being able to fly through the skies without the threat of imminent death surrounding her. Christopher acted about the same as when there was.

"Hang on!" Davis shouted. "Coming in to land!"

The descent was fast; Jeremy and Angie clutched each other, pretending that would help. The wind made it hard to see a whole lot, but eventually Imperialdramon slowed down and the landscape came into focus. A singular mountain dominated the terrain, with a tall waterfall plunging into a pool. A large river, originating from a thick forest in the distance, collected the pool before bending away. It was picturesque, but it distracted them from the main attraction- the castle nestled into the mountain.

It was not a glorious white mansion from fairy tales, but an earthy brown color that blended into its surroundings. A central house connected to a high keep directly behind it, while bridges led to taller towers on each side, both stretching at least a hundred feet high. High walls protected the compound on three sides, with the steep mountain cliff guarding the rear. A single front gate was the only obvious entrance.

Angie's eyes lit up. "Is that your base?"

"Sure is!" Davis replied happily.

"Wow, it's just like Age of Conquerors 3!" Jeremy shouted.

"They made sequels of that?" Davis looked back at him. "Sweet!"

With a groan, Angie said, "Oh God, now there's two of them."

"The walls don't do a whole lot if we can just fly over," Christopher said.

"Eh, let's have some fun anyway," Davis said. "Hold on!"

They picked up speed as Davis flew directly at the front gate. Needing no signal from Davis, Ken held out his digivice and the gate opened, just in time for Imperialdramon to tilt to a side and fly through it, coming to a clean landing in the courtyard.

Davis leaped off and extended his arms. "Welcome home!"

The other six disembarked. Once they did, Imperialdramon glowed and separated into Veemon and Wormmon. Wormmon jumped on Ken's shoulder.

Christopher raised an eyebrow. "That's not the digifuse I would have imagined out of those two."

Ken began to explain, "Actually, it's called-"

"Right? These guys are full of surprises, aren't they?" Davis explained differently, patting Veemon's head.

A new voice greeted them. "Is this the new group?" She was several years younger than Davis or Ken and wore a woman's equivalent of Davis's blue suit, exchanging slacks for a pencil skirt. She bowed at the newcomers. "Welcome. I'm Kari, the communications officer here. We should get you some new clothes before we start the tour."

"Yes, thank you," said Nene.

"We are going to get an explanation of what's going on, right?" Christopher asked.

"Save all questions for the end of the tour!" Kari chirped. "Follow me, please."

Nene and Angie obeyed immediately, with Ewan and Jeremy not waiting long. Christopher held back, but then again he was already dressed.

Ken stepped alongside him. "Yolei's explaining a few things to your friend right now. It's probably better that you hear it from him. Did you want me to put your backpack away?"

"I think I'll hang onto it if it's all the same with you," Christopher replied.

As Christopher walked past, Davis put a hand on Ken's shoulder. "Tai was right; there really is one in every group."

* * *

The promised "change of clothes" consisted of a big pile of shirts, shorts and jeans that were clearly afterthoughts of assorted wardrobes and offered slim pickings. Jeremy found a dingy gray collared shirt and sweatpants. Ewan settled on a bright orange t-shirt and dark orange gym shorts. Angie's new shirt was clearly intended, and sized, for a man, while Nene found a top and matching skirt that was only slightly too big for her. Kari pointed out bathrooms they could change in.

Once they returned, another girl, this one closer to their age, held a large bag. "Please put your other clothes in here and we'll get them washed. You can place an order to get your own set of clothes sent down the river soon."

"Down the river?" Ewan asked, dropping his pajamas into the bag.

"Sorry, it's what we call our delivery system," the girl replied. "We may be in an old castle, but thanks to the growth of online shopping, the Digital World has inventory of almost every modern amenity available. We can place an order and it will float down the river to us in a day or so. Like magic!"

Kari gestured towards the girl. "Oh, and this is Jeri. She's in charge of hospitality here."

Jeri smiled and bowed, before leaving with the bag of clothes. Ewan sniffed his t-shirt and asked, "So where did these come from?"

"Whatever brought us here seems to do so in the middle of the night. We figured you'd want something else to wear and put a call out for donations."

"Well, I can't complain about the service here!" Jeremy said. "Now, let me guess..." He ran past Kari into the center of the room they were in. He hoisted his hands into the air and exclaimed, "The Great Hall!"

Indeed, there was no confusing the room for anything else. It had large round tables and enough chairs to sit a few dozen people. Between these tables and the paths to the bathroom, several pallets were piled and draped in place to form a makeshift stage. Above them the walls vaulted together to make for an impressively high ceiling.

Kari grinned. "Well, the hall anyway. It's the only one we have, you know. But this is generally where we eat and hold assemblies... we also have festivals and events and stuff. We try to switch things up once in a while."

"That boring here, huh?" Christopher asked.

After a sigh, Kari ignored him. "Let's continue the tour."

The main house was straightforward and consisted mostly of large rooms that connected to other large rooms. Next to the hall was a chapel that had beeen renovated to include a library, a recreation room, and comfortable furniture and sets of tables. Two boys, one that looked about 18 and one only a little older than Kari, were in the middle of a chess game. Kari introduced them as Ryo and Cody.

"Ryo runs our castle security and Cody's on the response team with Yolei," she explained. "Our second team is currently on patrol, so you'll have to meet them later."

Their next stop took them across the bridge into one of the towers. The medical unit that dominated the first floor was closed, but Kari pointed it out, along with the giant painting of a Leomon that watched over the base of a staircase that wrapped around the tower wall.

"Along with the medical facility and the kitchen on the other side, these towers and the keep behind the hall are where our bedrooms are. We named each of them after Digimon who sacrificed themselves for one of our groups. This is Leo Tower, and on the other side is Ophani Tower."

Curiously, while the painting itself was beautiful, there had clearly been a late addition: someone had drawn in a thick piece of grass for Leomon to chew on.

* * *

Mikey Kudo saw the same sights from Aquilamon's back as they approached the castle. However, Yolei and Takuya did not take him to the main entrance, but into the woods at the base of the mountain, in front of the guard wall.

"The front gate responds to a digivice, which is cool and all," said Takuya, grin filled with mischief. "But if you're going to have fun here, it never hurts to know where the side door is."

Mikey did not see an opening, but a portion of the wall opened out, revealing a small, narrow doorway. He had to duck to get through it. On the other side, Hawkmon had a wing on a lever.

"There's no opening from the other side, so it's best to have a Digimon open and close the door for you," Hawkmon said.

With everyone through, Hawkmon closed the door and Takuya carefully made sure it was closed and locked.

"Shoutmon, allow me to show you where we Digimon are housed. It's quite nice, although you're always free to accompany your partner." Derisive, Hawkmon added, "Or stay cooped up in his digivice."

Mikey barely noticed them leave. Instead, he looked up at the nearby tower in awe. "Is this where we're gonna live?"

"In theory," Takuya replied. "With you guys showing up, it's getting a bit crowded. Hope we don't have to double-up on rooms too much."

"How many people live here?"

"Twenty-eight," Yolei answered. "Thirty-four with you guys, although six are usually out on patrol."

"Patrol?"

"Yep, going around the Digital World, keeping the peace, looking around for any bad guys trying to build up their power."

"They miss something from time to time," Takuya added. "That's where we come in." He pointed to himself and Yolei. "We're part of the response team that puts out the real fires."

"Is it dangerous?" Mikey asked.

"It's nothing we can't handle," Yolei answered.

Rather than follow the marked path, Takuya led them up a steep slope from the side door to the base of the tower. He stopped to catch his breath after scaling it. "With everybody here, I kinda wish they'd let us go out and try to find more clues on how to get out of here." To Mikey, it felt like the first time Takuya frowned. "We've done a lot of digging already, but there's gotta be something we missed." Now downright spiteful, he said, "Command doesn't want us spreading ourselves thin. Don't want to risk losing-"

"Takuya," Yolei barked. "Some other time, okay?"

Takuya relented. "Okay, okay. I mean, it could be worse. We're taken care of here, and there are plenty of... benefits."

He grinned at Yolei, whose face turned bright red. "Look, uh, I have to go," she blurted. "I'll see you tonight, okay?" She started running towards the main building, but stopped to flash one last smile at Mikey before leaving.

"She wants you," Takuya said, patting Mikey on the shoulder.

"Wait, what do you mean?"

Takuya's smile had returned with a vengeance. "It was pretty obvious when you two were in the woods. I think it was that bit about not turning your back on her. Great line. I might steal it." With a nod, he added, "But yeah, stop by her room tonight and see what happens. Ophani Tower, fourth floor, room on the left. I bet she'd be game."

Now Mikey was blushing. "Uh... don't you think you're getting a bit ahead of yourself? I mean, we just met. And besides-"

"Benefits, buddy. In the Digital World, a lot of the risks don't apply, so some of us tend to be pretty... open with that sort of thing. What do you expect from unsupervised teenagers with a lot of free time?"

Mikey thought back to the previous night at the beach house. Had the party not completely exhausted him, he wouldn't have gone to bed alone. Unsupervised teenagers with free time indeed.

"Besides, they won't have beds or rooms for you yet, so if you want a cozy place to sleep-"

"Hey, Takuya! Is that the new kid?" A cry from behind the keep startled both Takuya and Mikey out of their conversation. Four other boys and one Digimon were kicking a soccer ball. Takuya waved and ran towards them. Mikey walked.

The four boys were all only a year or two younger than Mikey. It was hard to tell as they ranged from fairly scrawny (and also with goggles) to husky. The husky one was first to extend a hand to Mikey.

"I hope Takky didn't give you too much trouble. Name's JP, I'm chief engineer here."

"In other words, he fixes the toilets and whatever else breaks down," Takuya added.

"You're just jealous because they put me in charge of something."

Takuya ignored him, instead gesturing to the goggled one. "This is Takato, he's also on the response team with us. And that's Guilmon."

As Takato and Mikey exchanged introductions, Guilmon sniffed Mikey. "You smell like sandwiches... and milkshakes." Mikey remembered Guilmon from the digicard. Once again, he swore that he had met a younger Takato once before, but given how awkward it was when he asked Takuya about it, he let it slide.

"Uh... yeah." Takuya turned to the two black-haired kids. Mikey could tell they were brothers. "And this is Koji and Koichi. Koji's on my response team. Koichi's... what do you do here?"

"I'm the events coordinator," Koichi answered. "I help plan special entertainment and activities."

JP wrapped his arm around Koichi's shoulder. "Today's entertainment is trying to figure out who his girlfriend is."

Takuya's smile widened. "Koichi! Since when did you have a-"

"TAKUYA!" This shout came from a girl. A girl marching straight at Takuya and Mikey. The girl was annoyed. "Is goofing off with these guys your idea of a tour?"

Gesturing to her, Takuya kept a sheepish smile. "And this is Zoe! She runs communications here."

Takato started to say, "Actually, Kari's head of-"

Zoe ignored him and smiled at Mikey. "I'm the one to go to if you actually want something done. You must be Mikey. I'm supposed to fetch you. They want you at Command. Your friends are already heading up there."

Mikey grinned. "Second time I'm being dragged away by a pretty girl today. I can get used to this."

Restraining a giggle, Zoe replied, "You're sweet. Let's go."

As Zoe led Mikey into the castle, Takuya and the other boys silently watched them leave. Then they all turned to Koichi.

"Guess again," he said.

* * *

Jeri Katou had said the castle had access to "almost every modern amenity." The new arrivals imagined stuff like microwaves and hair dryers. They did not expect that elevators had been installed in this medieval castle. After touring the kitchen in Ophani Tower, the bathhouse, and the outside of the side house for the Digimon, they were riding to the top floor of Wizard Keep.

"We still want to know what's going on," said Christopher.

"We're here!" Kari said as the doors opened.

For a moment, they forgot they were inside a castle. The floor was carpeted, the walls were painted, and four steel workstations lined one of them, all connected by long countertops. Computer monitors were in each station, and along the walls above the counters. Two of the stations were manned by young men sitting in cushy office chairs, both wearing identical uniforms as Davis.

Neither turned around until Kari started talking. "In addition to our patrol team and scouting unit, this is where we monitor the Digital World, gather information and process data. Along with Davis and me, these are the other two officers- Izzy and Thomas."

The shorter one nodded. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Izzy and I take care of internal operations and research."

The second officer, the only resident they had seen that looked older than them, smiled. "Thomas Norstein. Tactical officer in charge of external planning and deployment strategy."

As the five of them bowed, shook hands and introduced themselves to Izzy and Thomas, a third figure stepped in from the side of the room. To the left of the workstations was a large open area, punctuated by a single round table. This area was illuminated by the giant plexiglass window that offered a panoramic view of the land in front of the castle. The window made it hard to make out the face of the boy standing in front of it, until he stepped closer and the overhead lights cast a better light on him.

To their surprise, he was no older than anyone else, and likely the same age as Davis. His hair was enormous, to the point where it was hard to figure out just how the pair of goggles navigated their way around his forehead. Unlike Izzy or Thomas or pretty much anybody they'd met along the way, the commander was not smiling.

"And this is-" Kari attempted an introduction, but a signal from one of the empty workstations interrupted her and she rushed over to tend to it. She cupped a set of headphones to an ear before pushing a button and saying "okay, thank you" into a microphone.

She looked at the five newcomers and said, "Your leader is on his way up right now. As I was saying, this is our commander, Tai."

Tai raised an eyebrow at Kari. "Also your brother. You can say that too."

"In this case, it's better to keep it professional," said Thomas.

"I think you're confusing us for people who care about that sort of thing," Angie said.

The elevator doors opened and both Mikey and Zoe stepped out. "Did anybody order a team leader?" Zoe said cheerfully.

"There you are, Mikey!" Jeremy pointed at him. "Wait, that's not the same girl you left with! What were you up to?"

Mikey scratched his head. "Uh, it was very... informative. We can talk later. So this is Command I take it?"

Zoe nodded and stepped back on the elevator as the doors closed. Kari, Thomas and Izzy all briefly introduced themselves to Mikey before Tai stepped forward. "Mikey, huh?" Tai said, catching Mikey's eye. Mikey ceased his handshake with Thomas and approached the commander.

Tai's face carried no expression, but was aimed squarely at Mikey. "Did Yolei and Takuya give you the basic idea of our situation?"

Now Mikey's face went cold. He looked back at his teammates, all eager to hear his response. Mikey turned back to Tai and only nodded.

"Takuya didn't editorialize too much, did he?" Izzy asked.

Mikey looked over at Izzy. "Uh, no." He wasn't sure if he was being honest.

Tai continued before they could get too distracted. "So you know what we're dealing with and what you've fallen into then."

There was a moment of hesitation, but Mikey realized that the little information he had was enough. They were stuck. And as much as he wanted to come up with the brilliant solution that would send them all home, believing that he had one over everybody else was probably selling them short. Surely they were capable, and surely they had tried.

Either way, upstaging them by charging in and pretending he could help them wouldn't look good. He nodded at Tai. "Yes, sir."

"Then you should also know that the only reason you're here is because you are all very special individuals. There are others with Digimon partners that aren't here. Whatever happened six years ago, you accepted the job, you went out, and you achieved something amazing. Somewhere out there, there is a Digital World that is a better place because of what you did." Tai extended a hand. "So before we do anything else, we wanted to say thank you."

Mikey gasped. It was the last thing he had expected. For what they had accomplished, the Fusion Fighters received no credit when they got back home. Most people didn't even believe their stories. He didn't expect any thanks from somebody who had never met him. Much less somebody who had presumably done it all before. Perhaps somebody who had even done it better. Trying not to get choked up, he said, "T... thank you, sir."

Tai looked over Mikey's shoulder at the other five. "First thing we're going to ask you guys to do is go down one floor. Zoe will help you get dressed for tonight."

Angie held out her arms and her oversized shirt. "I don't know if you guys are the best judges of what we want to wear."

Thomas raised an eyebrow. "I think that shirt was mine." Angie shuddered.

Tai chuckled to himself. "Yeah, that's why Zoe will help you. We've got something better for your initiation."

* * *

The robes at least covered up their ill-fitting and worn clothing. They were white, with brown trim and extending to the knees. The six Fusion Fighters now were huddled outside, waiting for word to enter the main hall. Each of them had one of their Digimon with them.

Koichi looked up nervously at Christopher's Greymon. "Um, could you go down to Rookie or something?"

"We have no rookies on this team," Greymon grumbled. "Only experienced, strong fighters."

Stepping back, Koichi said, "That's not what I..." Then he sighed. Of course Greymon didn't know what he meant. "Group doesn't have levels," he mumbled. "Perfect."

He walked up to the entrance, making sure everybody was in place. He poked his head through the front door. Dorulumon caught a glimpse of what was inside and said, "Yeah, this isn't really my scene." He returned to Angie's Fusion Loader. A second later, Cutemon popped out.

"Wonder what spooked him," he said.

Koichi looked at Cutemon, then flashed Angie a thumb's up. "Better."

Standing in front of the doors, Koichi addressed the entire group, explaining what they were supposed to do, not totally explaining why, nor answering any questions. But they lined up the way they were supposed to and Koichi threw the doors open.

They entered the building, but stopped before passing through the doors of the hall proper. On the stage, Davis, Thomas, Izzy and Kari sat in the back, all looking poised in their uniforms. Tai stood at a podium, in the middle of a speech. "So for tonight, we don't worry about the future, or even the present. This is where we welcome the newest team to our family. We can learn their stories and share ours with all of them. Above all we show our appreciation for the accomplishments of these six heroes."

Tai nodded at Cutemon in front of the line, who began marching to the stage with Angie behind him. Cutemon realized immediately why Dorulumon backed out, as the entire castle was in attendance, nearly two dozen people, most accompanied by a partner Digimon. They were applauding.

As they reached the stage, Tai announced, "Angie Hinomoto and..." He peered down at his cheat card, then at Cutemon. He stood on the far left of the stage, directly in front of Angie.

Cutemon noticed the interruption and shrugged. "Sorry. Late fill-in."

Tai shrugged and held his digivice up at Cutemon. "Cutemon!" he read.

By the time he had done that, the second honoree had reached the stage. "Jeremy Tsurgi and Ballistamon!" Tai called.

Jeremy cheated and stood beside Ballistamon. "They're not gonna make us sing, are they?" Ballistamon asked.

"Ewan Amano and Damemon!" were followed quickly by "Nene Amano and Sparrowmon!"

Nene wore a big smile and tried not to sweat as she waved to everybody. Ewan leaned over and whispered, "Man, Sis, how do you do this in front of hundreds of people? It's hard enough in front of twenty."

"Twenty people is much harder than hundreds, Ewan," Nene answered.

"Christopher Aonuma and Greymon." Greymon, barely clearing the entrance, stood in front of the stage. Christopher still had to stand to a side. Tai turned away and, under his breath, muttered, "Why is he blue?"

He shrugged it off and announced, "Finally- Mikey Kudo, and Shoutmon!"

Shoutmon raised his arms in triumph. Mikey just smiled. The people cheering for him had no idea who he was or what his team had gone through. But in them he could hear their appreciation and their empathy. He could hear that they had been through the same. And while it wasn't the reason any of them went through what they did, he could hear them acknowledge that it was nice to finally get some credit for it all. This time, Mikey couldn't help but choke back a tear.

* * *

The ensuing reception had no talk about the future. They were still very much trapped in this world and everything other than what was within the walls of the castle were still in doubt. But the young men and women, most about the same age as Mikey and his friends, were excited. They hung on every word of Mikey's stories, and Mikey was shocked by some of theirs. He was surprised to learn that digivolution was commonplace, but digifuse ranged anywhere from a special circumstance to a completely foreign concept. The stories and the adventures were unique, but the night served to prove that they were really no different than anyone else.

While it reassured Mikey that the Fusion Fighters had a new home and a new family, he was also left convinced that there were no easy answers. Takuya had said that Tai had gotten complacent, but at one point they had to have tried to find a way out. They had to have fought for it. They still had to have an eye on it. They were too structured, too organized, to neglect their ultimate objective.

One more thing bothered him: while he made sure to describe the battle against Quartzmon to everyone he suspected of being there, nobody found it familiar.

As enjoyable as the night was, all of these thoughts made it impossible for Mikey to fall asleep. The rigid chair he was stuck in didn't help. Since they had not been assigned rooms yet, they were put up in the library for the night. There were only four couches, and he graciously allowed his friends to take them, with Jeremy having the chivalry to sleep on the floor. Jeremy was not only asleep, but snoring.

Mikey conceded this round and went to the bathroom, where he used the facilities and cupped his hands to drink some water from the sink. He should have probably thought it a miracle that they had plumbing. As he walked through the now-empty hall to return to the library, the thought struck him: Ophani Tower, fourth floor, room on the left. But Takuya wasn't being serious... was he?

Sleepless and restless after an exhausting day, Mikey couldn't get the idea out of his head. A year ago, he wouldn't have believed things worked like that, but one term in college, and especially one night in a beach house, had taught him a lot. He did feel a connection with Yolei, and she did seem to know exactly what Takuya meant by "benefits." This was his ticket to a comfortable bed and a pretty girl, and he could have done with both that night. He'd be a fool not to at least inquire.

He got halfway to Ophani Tower before he stopped. Along with the obvious doubts about whether Yolei would go for it or if he'd be spotted or if she'd even be awake, it was unfair to his team. They had couches, yes, but they were enduring the same night of questions and uncertainty that he was. And he never did get around to explaining anything. In the end, it was the same as always: he couldn't turn his back on them.

With a deep sigh, he returned to his chair and sat down, pondering ways he could stretch out.

"Can't sleep either?" Angie was on the couch next to him. She popped out of her sleeping bag and turned around, setting her chin on her couch's armrest.

"It's a lot to process for one night," he said. "But I don't think we're going home any time soon." He shook his head. "I don't know know how long they've been here, but-"

"I do," she said. Her eyes welled up. "Kari refused to tell us, but I heard it eventually."

She looked down, shaking her head. "The first six, the original group... they've been here for eleven years."

Angie started crying. Mikey rubbed her head, not at all surprised by her tears. He was stunned himself. He had imagined that they had been stranded for a long time, but "a long time" to him meant maybe a year. Two tops. It would have taken them that long to carve out a living like this, and it was obvious the groups did not all arrive at the same time. But over the span of eleven years? Suddenly having Koichi to plan events and such didn't seem silly at all. It was vital to maintaining sanity.

"That's not the worst of it," Angie sobbed. He leaned in closer to her, unable to fathom anything worse.

"The first six?" She looked up at him: "They were originally the first eight."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 2: "Sleepwalker"**  
The new arrivals get used to their new home and are eager to find ways to help out around the castle. Izzy's struggles to find them all sleeping space leads to some desperate decisions. Others size up the new group's romantic possibilities, which excites Mikey and frustrates Nene and Angie.

" _They can be idiots sometimes but everybody here is a good person. They wouldn't be here if they weren't."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
Given how closely tied the Hunters crossover must be to any story bringing each season together, it would be far easier to use the original Japanese names. The increased availability and exposure to the subtitled version may make it more palatable as well. But that would also involve using the Japanese characterizations, which are a bit more rigid and would involve complicated explanations, particularly where honorifics are concerned (especially in a setting with an organized chain of command). I'm more comfortable with writing around the dub, different and flawed as it may be. Not only that, but the characters in the dub tend to be more expressive and some of the differences, particularly with the Fusion cast, make for some pretty fun scenarios and analysis. But don't worry, knowledge of the Japanese version, and even the manga, video games or CD dramas, will be rewarded in its own way.

Lost in the big crossover in Hunters is the fact that Jeremy and Angie ended up receiving Fusion Loaders and many of Mikey's Digimon to boot. And yes, at some point Mikey caught a Puppetmon. The absence of characters unique to Hunters will diminish its impact (and I'm not using too many of the ones Mikey and Ewan caught), but there will be no shying away from its events.

So yeah... Kari's age... it's not that complicated and it's explained fully in a few episodes. You can probably figure it out now if you put all the pieces together.

dWvPFRX4ds0  
B009TP7VZE


	3. 02- Sleepwalker

**Neverworld**

 _We are sleepwalkers, and we don't know what we're doing,_  
 _and we don't know where we're going, and we don't know who we're screwing._  
 _We are sleepwalkers, and we're stumbling and shaking,_  
 _and we don't know how we got here, and we don't know when we're waking._  
 _\- Jim's Big Ego, "sleepwalker"_

 **Episode 2**

Mikey Kudo must have fallen asleep that night, because he was jarred awake early the next morning. He wondered first if it was Jeremy's snoring, and if so, if that indicated a serious undiagnosed medical condition. But, in true medieval castle fashion, it was the sound of a running vacuum cleaner fifteen feet away that did the trick. Somebody was getting a jump on the morning cleaning.

He opened his eyes, rubbed them, then saw that it was a girl he only barely remembered from the previous night. He was pretty sure her name was Suzie. She had introduced herself like everybody else had, but Mikey was so thrown by her youth that he found it impossible to say anything to her. She probably wasn't all that younger than Kari, but Kari at least acted older than her age. Suzie's dress, hair and mannerisms still clung to her lack of maturity, making it impossible for a legal adult like Mikey to relate to her on any sort of equal terms.

Two other things about Suzie bothered him. Despite her youth, when she was six years younger she had still presumably gone through the same trials as everyone else in the castle. Second, he had been her current age when he first entered the Digital World. Suddenly that felt like an eternity ago.

Maybe it was him watching her that made her look his way. Suzie stopped the vacuum once she spotted him and the rest of his group. She shook her head, cracking a smug smile. "That's where they put you for the night?"

"We don't have rooms yet," Mikey replied. Not that he was happy about his crash space.

"See if they were smart, they would have remembered that some of the kids on patrol have their own rooms that you could have borrowed. Henry does. Yoshi does too. They could have let you crash in their rooms."

Mikey blinked. "That's... good to know." It actually wasn't. He didn't like the idea of the castle's youngest resident coming up with a far better solution than the consensus choice.

"Well, you definitely can't stay here tonight." Suzie looked over to the empty tables behind Mikey. "JP's got his D&D group tonight and they tend to run pretty late."

Jeremy stirred from his sleeping bag and faced Mikey. "D&D? How do we get in on that?"

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa had given up. Not that breakfast at the castle was ever a special affair. But after slaving away at a proper feast the night before to welcome the new arrivals, the kitchen staff wanted to prolong the impression that all meals were amazing. Their illusion was shattered already as they served giant stacks of plain waffles that arrived a half hour behind schedule.

By the time she sat down to her own breakfast, the head chef did not give a damn. "Hey, we all like waffles, right?" she said, announcing her surrender.

"Trouble in the kitchen?" Yolei asked, already adding syrup to her plate.

"That darn oven is acting up. That's why dinner was so late last night. We were lucky to get it out when we did." Mimi sighed.

"Is that why you missed the party?"

She nodded. "I was tired, I was cranky, and my hair was a disaster. That's no way to make a first impression with the new kids." She smiled at Yolei. "So what's the scouting report?"

"Very promising," Yolei said, gesturing towards Mikey at a nearby table. She had intentionally chosen this spot to observe him and his friends. "Mikey has a lot going for him."

Mimi nodded. "I see... did you get to run his field test?"

"Oh, he passed." Yolei chuckled to herself.

"Starting to regret the whole boyfriend thing?"

"I never would have signed up for it if I knew we were getting some new options." Yolei turned to Mimi. Matter-of-fact, she said, "But... I'm going to be good and stick with it."

"That's great!" Mimi leaned in closer to the boys. "Means I get my pick. Ooh, who's that next to him? He's cute too!"

"Ewan?"

"Ewan... interesting..."

"Seems like the smart one. I know you like the smart ones."

Mimi nodded. "Anyone else?"

Yolei shrugged. "Jeremy's... unusual. Christopher's kinda hot but he looks like a tough one to get a hold of. He kind of did his own thing all night. Like he didn't want to be there."

"Ew, no thanks. It would be Koji all over again."

"We agreed not to talk about Koji." Mimi nodded and they resumed their breakfast, still casting the occasional glance at Mikey or Ewan.

* * *

This did not go unnoticed at the target table. "They're checking us out, aren't they?" asked Ewan, trying not to make eye contact.

"Yep," Mikey replied. He was pretending not to make eye contact, but looked up and flashed a grin at Yolei whenever he could get away with it. "I think she likes me."

"What kind of name is Yolei anyway?" Angie muttered, keeping her head down.

"I get sizing up the power of our Digimon," Christopher said, glaring over at Yolei, who was too fixated on Mikey to notice. "This is a bit extreme."

"Anyone looking at me?" Jeremy asked. Nobody was.

Mikey shrugged. "What? We're teenagers. And I heard hookups just sort of happen here. Something about this place making it less risky."

Nene frowned. "That's very disturbing."

"Really?" Mikey raised an eyebrow. "Not going around looking for strong boys anymore?"

"Haven't found anyone yet."

"It's the curse of the Amano family," Ewan said. "We are irresistible to the opposite sex."

Nene nodded. "It's a hard life."

"Well, can you get your admirers off of me then?" Angie said, bitter. She lifted her head in time to see Ryo and Kenta at a table on the other end with eyes on her and Nene. They looked away, Ryo whispering into Kenta's ear. Kenta chuckled to himself. Angie shook her head. "Mikey, I swear if I ever catch you acting like that I'll kill you."

Mikey looked over his shoulder at the offenders, mostly to shield his eyes from Angie's glare. "What? Me? No way!"

He was bailed out when Izzy attempted to make an announcement on the stage. "Attention everybody... can I have everyone's attention please?" He wasn't doing a very good job.

Next to him, Jeri did much better. "EVERYBODY LISTEN UP!" The room fell silent.

"Thank you," Izzy mumbled. Jeri smiled and stepped back. "As everybody is aware, we have six new residents here, but all of the rooms in the towers are occupied. That means that unfortunately we will need more people sharing rooms. If anybody is willing to share with somebody, either with a friend or one of the new kids, please let me know immediately. We'd like to get all of the moving completed today."

"New beds and sheets have been ordered and will be coming down the river shortly," Jeri said. "Can the new kids please see me some time today about clothes and such. We want your stay to be as comfortable as possible." She added a smile.

The chatter resumed immediately. Mikey listened for a while and the most common phrase he heard throughout was "no way."

Ewan tried to ignore it. "So... what are our plans for today?"

* * *

Hours later, their plans for the day ended up with four of them mulling about the library, quietly playing cards as the routine of castle life began to set in.

Others were being even less productive. "So if it's not Zoe, who else could it be?" Takuya asked Koji as they entered the room. Both of them wore baseball gloves and Takuya compulsively slammed a ball into his mitt. "I'm pretty sure it's not Yolei. She wouldn't be so hot for Mikey."

Koji smirked. "She still would, but she's a longshot. Jeri's with Takato, so she's out."

"Rika?"

"If it's Rika, I'm staging an intervention. Mimi?"

Takuya thought about it for a moment. Then he nodded. "Ooh... yeah, Mimi's a candidate."

Angie stood up angrily and shouted, "Is this really all you boys talk about?!"

That stopped them. Takuya turned to her. "Whoa, you don't understand!" He put a hand on Koji's shoulder. "His brother has a mystery girlfriend! This is the biggest news in weeks!"

Koji cleared his throat and eyed Takuya. "Other than these guys showing up, you mean."

"Are you two still going on about that?" Mikey asked. "There's really nothing else to do around here?"

"Well, we were on our way to fetch Takato and toss the ball around." Takuya held up his glove. You guys wanna join us?"

"Sure!" Ewan said. "Once we're done with this game."

"Any luck on finding rooms?" Koji asked.

"I thought Izzy was supposed to figure that out."

"That's if he can wrangle up enough volunteers," Takuya said, chuckling.

"You think that'll be a problem?" Mikey asked. "Given what we all did, you guys seem like you're pretty selfless."

Takuya shrugged. "You'd think that, but we went through this when the last guys showed up. Nobody's giving up their only private space without a fight."

"Everybody wants a place where they can be on their own. That's just how people are," Koji added.

"Yeah, it just makes things... easier." Takuya grinned. "You know."

Nene smiled back. "I don't know what you're talking about. I've already agreed to share a room with Angie."

Ewan nodded. "Yep. And Mikey and I are going to split one." He turned to Mikey. "Right?"

Mikey was still staring at Takuya. "Uh... yeah," he said with no confidence.

"Just saying you may regret that." Takuya winked as he and Koji walked away.

Once out of earshot, Angie muttered, "He was talking about sex, wasn't he?"

"I do believe he was," Ewan replied. Angie groaned.

With a grin, Mikey said, "Something tells me you don't wanna play ball with him after this."

Nene answered for Angie. "Actually, Angie and I were thinking of checking out the bath."

"If we can't get away from the boys there, we have a problem," Angie added.

They resumed their game, staying silent long enough for Ewan to change the topic. "Is this really all we're doing today? Because at some point I'd like to look around outside."

"I'm with you there," Mikey replied. "But I want to get a feel for what things are like here first. Get used to everybody and all that before we run off exploring the rest of the world."

"So where's Christopher?" Nene asked.

Mikey shrugged. "Probably ran off to explore the rest of the world."

"Understandable. I already sent the Monitamon out to have a look around. What about Jeremy?"

Angie scoffed. "We're living in a medieval castle. It's gonna take him a few days to get over that. He won't rest until he has every nook and cranny of this place figured out."

"It does worry me though," Ewan said. He paused, frowning as he played a card. "What happens when we adjust to all this? We're not going to be stuck here playing cards every day, are we?"

"Everyone here seems to have some sort of job," Angie said. "They're either ready to go out and fight like Takuya or help run the castle. I just hope there's something left for us to do."

Nobody had a response. Eventually they just continued playing quietly. They all had the same fear.

"Hey." Yolei broke the silence as she walked by. She didn't stay to chat, continuing into the stacks of the library.

Mikey pulled back his chair and stood up. "Hey, play a round without me. I need to, uh, use the bathroom." He followed her.

The other three gave him a moment to believe he had actually fooled them. Then Nene shook her head. "That's not even trying. The bathroom's the other way." They were also playing in teams, so continuing was impossible without him.

Angie threw her cards on the table. "Seriously, what is it about Yolei that turns him into a drooling skirt chaser?"

"How do you know he wasn't before?" Ewan asked.

With a glare, she replied, "I think I know my best friend."

"But do you? You've been going to different schools for years. You don't see each other all that often."

"We..." Angie looked down. "We still hang out sometimes. Just not as often as we used to."

"You see him a lot more, Ewan," Nene said. "Is he a drooling skirt chaser?"

Ewan blinked. "No. I mean he dates but..." He looked back at the hallway. "...this is unusual for him."

"I've never seen him running around trying to pick up girls," Angie said.

"I don't think he's running around." Ewan tried to spot Mikey in the stacks. "It doesn't take an expert fisherman to start reeling in once he's got a bite."

* * *

The section of the library stacks that Yolei had entered were isolated and private. For Mikey to track her down the way he did, she knew it wasn't about finding a book. "What's up?" she asked, still looking for hers.

This is where Mikey realized that he had no idea how he wanted to approach this conversation. "Uh... whatcha looking for?"

Yolei chuckled. "You can do better that that." She shot him a glance. "Obviously you want to ask me something."

"Um... yeah." At that moment, the ideal conversation path came to Mikey. With a quick tap of his goggles and far more composure, he asked, "So yesterday you and Takuya were talking about, um... benefits."

Yolei's blush returned on cue. Mikey's almost did too. "I was just, uh... he said that some of the risks don't apply here. How's that work?"

She faced him, still mortified. "Uh... we have a medical director for questions like that."

"Wouldn't that be awkward?"

"And this isn't?" Mikey laughed, his hand finding its way to the back of his head. Yolei sighed and relented. "Well, so usually there's two main risks of having... benefits." She cleared her throat, already regretting her continued use of Takuya's euphemism. "One isn't a problem since real, er... human world diseases don't exist here. In the Digital World, you can't catch a cold or the flu or... you know. There's some other digital viruses here to worry about and you can still get hurt or wear yourself out, but... well, that's one."

Mikey nodded. "Does the second have something to do with us not aging here?"

"Bingo. The whole process stops. That means it's impossible to..." Yolei held out a hand. "Yeah."

"Makes sense."

Looking away, she muttered, "There's another perk there for girls that I won't mention."

"Well thanks." Mikey smiled. "I was just confused because Takuya brought it up so openly. That explains why. It's just not such a big deal here."

"Um, I wouldn't say it's not a big deal," she blurted, frowning. "Just because it's not risky doesn't mean you should go sleeping with everybody in the castle."

Now Mikey was taken aback. "Oh, no, no way! I only brought it up because Takuya seemed to think that you might be, uh... open to... uh..." He had steered the conversation exactly the way he wanted, but he still tripped over the finish line.

Yolei narrowed her eyes. "Oh, did he now?"

"He was weirdly confident. Told me where your room was and everything."

She took a moment to process that, nodding slowly. "Okay, so he's dead."

Looking away, Mikey said, "I guess that's a 'no' then."

Yolei held up her hands, her tone changing. "It's not you! Normally, I wouldn't even be opposed to the idea, actually. Gotta admit I think you're sort of... amazing." She took a deep breath and stood up straight. "But one, he had no right to do that. And also, I have a boyfriend."

Mikey heaved a sigh. "Okay, that's great!"

It actually was. He had been so indecisive about it the night before that he wanted to know if visiting her would have been an embarrassing failure. Knowing that it would have been not only put his mind at ease, but wiped out any thoughts of trying again. That she called him amazing was a bonus.

Out of the corner of her eye, Yolei found her book and claimed it. "So yeah, thank you for not doing anything stupid."

"No problem. I'm not gonna lie; I kinda thought about it. Really hard to sleep on those chairs, you know. But it's good to know if I had done it, I would have struck out."

She started to walk out, stopping as she went past him. "Oh, I don't know about that." She tried to hide a grin. "Cute guy shows up at my door in the middle of the night, needs a place to crash..." Her blush returned. "That would have been hard to pass up. One of those once-in-a-lifetime fantasies, you know?"

Suddenly, Mikey felt sick to his stomach. "Yeah, totally," he muttered. "Never happens."

Yolei shook her head. "Maybe in my dreams tonight. Well, see you!"

* * *

Izzy Izumi stumbled into the Wizard Keep elevator, glancing at his tablet computer and waiting for the doors to close so he could properly vent his frustration. Granted, Izzy's method of venting his frustration was little more than a loud grumble, but more ill-tempered men would have been ready to kick something.

He would even be denied that, as Suzie shouted, "Izzy, hold the door!" He obliged, of course, but he wasn't happy about it.

"Hi, Suzie," he muttered.

"Do you still need anyone to share rooms?"

Need? Other than the new kids, he had gotten zero volunteers. "Yes, of course. Did you want to room with somebody?" He readied his tablet.

"I can move in with Henry!"

Izzy hesitated. "Um, is Henry okay with that?"

"I'm sure he won't mind!"

With a shrug, Izzy entered it into the system. "Okay, I'll put you down, but you have to make sure to tell him before he gets back. Have Kari get a message out to Marcus's team."

"Sure thing!"

"Excellent. Find Jeri and she'll get you into his room so you can start moving your things." He smiled at her. "That's very helpful, thank you."

She smiled back as the elevator doors opened. Unfortunately, Kari was not at her station, so Suzie didn't bother stepping off before the doors closed.

"Any luck?" asked Thomas.

Izzy dropped his tablet on his desk and slumped in his chair. "Suzie. That was it." He sighed. "I still need three more."

"May I offer a suggestion?" Izzy gestured. Of course Thomas could. "Why don't I move in with you?"

Izzy's initial thought was to protest, but he stopped when he couldn't think of a reason why. Thomas explained: "We seem to operate on similar wavelengths and have a good rapport. In addition, I would like to be in the keep instead of the top floor of Leo Tower. That would be helpful in case of emergency."

Scratching his chin, Izzy said, "I've never had a roommate before."

"Neither have I. It might be a new experience for both of us."

"All right. Let's do it." Izzy shook Thomas's hand and entered the information into his tablet.

Next to them, Davis smirked. "And that's how Norstein found his new butler."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Thomas asked, certain he was supposed to be angry at the remark, but not sure why.

"Come on Izzy, you really think a guy with a butler knows anything about keeping a room together? It's gonna be a wreck."

Eyebrow raised, Izzy replied, "And I'm sure your room is spotless."

"Hey, I own my mess. But I bet Thomas's room is secretly filthy and he won't admit it."

Thomas folded his arms. "I assure you I am fully capable of keeping a room clean on my own. That incident with the Wet Vac was due to mechanical failure."

"We have a Wet Vac?"

Rather than feed the conversation further, Izzy slid his chair next to Davis's station. "Anyway, you know what might help keep the mess in your room under control?"

Davis wrinkled his nose. "A Wet Vac?"

"N... no. Maybe you should think about a roommate too. Like Ken for example."

Throwing a hand in the air, Davis exclaimed, "Why does everyone keep suggesting that?! You're like the fourth person today. Why do you think we'd make good roommates?"

Despite the outburst, Izzy answered calmly. "Well... you two are pretty much attached at the hip when you're not working."

Thomas added, "I don't believe you two have had a single argument since I've been here."

"Which is impressive because I think you've had arguments with everybody else here in that time."

With a shrug, Thomas said, "Also if we need to deploy Imperialdramon overnight, it would be really handy to have somebody already in your room to wake you up."

"What, I'm a heavy sleeper!" Davis picked his ear. "And I only missed the alarm that one time. That's no excuse to make Ken move into my room."

"Hey, did you guys hear that?" Tai's voice from his central command station forced the other three to cease their conversation. "It sounded like screaming."

Thomas wheeled over to the vacant communication station and listened to the signal emanating from it. Tai walked up to them. In a low voice, he asked Davis, "Is Kari still at lunch?" Davis nodded.

The communication system was both a marvel of Digital World technology and an instrument of pure terror. Sound waves in the world could be recorded and compressed in one location, then converted and translated here. Recordings from everywhere within a hundred mile radius could be picked up and traced back instantly. Since hearing every single sound would drive anybody crazy, they only monitored the loud stuff.

Thomas listened and heard another scream, but traced the location and nodded. He turned to Tai and said, "There's a nearby cottage that some Otamamon have recently taken shelter in, but some Bakemon have been haunting it for ages. They're doing their best to drive the Otamamon out. We sent Koji and Cody there last week to investigate, but since the Bakemon have a legitimate claim to the house and their methods haven't turned violent, we aren't taking action."

Tai blinked. "Does Christopher know that?" Nobody responded. "He took off a couple hours ago and last I checked he was close by. We don't want him getting the wrong idea and intervening."

Davis jumped out of his chair. "I'm on it."

As Davis mashed the button on the elevator, Thomas entered some commands at Kari's station. "I'm having Cody go with you in case we need to resolve anything, peaceful or otherwise."

"Gotcha," Davis said as the elevator arrived.

Tai stared at Kari's workstation. "When Kari's not here, we need to make sure Zoe is."

Thomas had returned to his station, typing quickly. "Actually, Kari was supposed to be back-"

"Hey, Tai." Izzy interrupted Thomas, grabbing his tablet and approaching the commander. "Speaking of Kari... so you know we're trying to free up rooms for Mikey's group."

"Uh huh," Tai mumbled, turning around and heading to the giant window.

"Well, volunteers have been coming up a little short, so I thought that since you and Kari used to share a room back home-"

"What? Are you crazy?" Tai turned to Izzy. "Why would I want to do that?"

"It's not so much wanting to as it is you two are accustomed to it. And we really need people to step up. You shared a room with her for several years."

"Yeah, and I've gotten used to not having to. It's really nice not having all her stuff everywhere. Or not having to worry about accidentally walking in on her changing or having her walk in on you. Ever have that happen?"

Izzy tried to shoo away any mental images. "Just that one time with Mimi."

"Oh yeah." Tai fondly invited mental images of that incident before turning serious again. "Besides, don't you think it would be weird for the commander to have to share a room with somebody?"

Grimacing, Izzy replied, "Perhaps, but we shouldn't be acting like we're more important than anyone else. We should demonstrate that we're willing to make sacrifices too. For example, Thomas is going to move in with me."

"What, seriously?" Tai shot Thomas a glance. Now that there was an active mission, Thomas was dialed in to his screen. "That'll be weird."

Izzy didn't understand why, but shook it off. "I just figured it would be easier than forcing Christopher or Jeremy to live with a stranger."

"Well don't we have a rule about boys and girls rooming together?"

Izzy rolled his eyes. "We should revisit that. It never really worked anyway. At any rate, it wouldn't apply to brothers and sisters. In fact, Suzie and Henry are going to room together now."

Tai's face lit up and he pointed at Izzy. "Hey, Ewan and Nene are brother and sister!"

Without missing a beat, Izzy replied, "Ewan will be rooming with Mikey. Nene will be rooming with Angie. See, they're actually being helpful."

"And we still don't have enough rooms?"

"We're still short two." Izzy paused for a moment. "I'm just suggesting it right now. I can't force you to do anything." He walked back to his station and sat down, taking a deep breath before adding, "At least not yet."

* * *

Jeremy Tsurgi had been left disappointed by the tour his group had received the day before. Kari had taken them through all the essential locations of the castle and they knew where to go to eat, bathe, and unwind, along with what to do in case of emergencies. Jeremy wanted to know about the non-essential places. No castle that had been subjected to as many renovations as this one had would be totally efficient. There were bound to be forgotten rooms and corridors that revealed more of the castle's character.

The first floor didn't offer much. Jeremy did find plenty of hallways and rooms, but they were little more than glorified supply closets and secluded offices. His biggest discovery was a narrow spiral stairway that led downstairs. At no point had it ever been stated that there was a lower level. He would not be let down here.

Lighting had been an afterthought; while Jeremy found a switch, the lamps were dim and far apart. He found a flashlight, although he would have preferred a it torch. In his head, this was a proper dungeon crawl. He even found an actual dungeon! He reloaded Ballistamon in case he found any hostile squatters that needed to be converted into experience points.

In time, he realized that there was little exciting about this lower floor other than being dark and creepy. There were a lot of pipes, wiring, and power boxes in working order. That meant somebody had to come down here to keep them in working order, and likely cleared the area of any dangerous vermin. There were some neat installations like the natural well that supplied the castle with clean water, but after an hour Jeremy was bored and ready to head back up. This was when he realized that he was lost.

What he thought was the way back to the entrance turned out to be a dead end. However, he did find light shining through an opening high up a wall. There was also piping that zigzagged from the floor up to it that was sturdy enough to use as a ladder. Jeremy climbed it, thinking he had found another exit.

He did... one that was clearly meant for a smaller Digimon to slip through. It was also not on the ceiling, but inside the wall of Ophani Tower. Jeremy found himself looking into the kitchen. JP had his head inside an oven.

"This is looking bad," JP mumbled.

"Did you figure out what's wrong?" Mimi asked. She was perched atop a counter, watching him.

"Nope. That's the problem." JP pulled himself out and turned off his flashlight. "All the wiring looks fine in there."

"Are you saying it's not broken?!" She crossed her legs. "Because it is broken and you'd better fix it!"

JP chuckled, raising his hands in defense. "What you're talking about sounds like an electrical issue. If it's not in the oven itself, it's in the wires that lead to it." He turned in Jeremy's direction. "Hey Tommy, flip the breaker."

Jeremy hadn't noticed the younger boy standing in the kitchen right next to the hole. Tommy flipped a switch on a circuit breaker and JP turned the oven on. "If the faulty wire isn't in here, I'll have to go hunting for it. That might take a while."

As JP turned the oven on, Jeremy noticed a small spark from a wire on his side of the wall. He held his torch closer to it and saw fraying, as if an animal had gnawed on it. Jeremy turned back to the hole and shouted, "Hey, I think I found it!"

JP, Mimi and especially Tommy were surprised to see Jeremy there. "J... Jerry?" JP said.

"How did you get inside the wall?" Mimi asked.

"Oh, you can get in from the basement," JP answered. "Why are you in the basement?"

Jeremy shook them off. "Never mind that! There's a bad wire over here."

JP walked up to him. "Oh, well okay then. I'll head on over there. If it's high up I might have to get my spirits back from Koji, but-"

"I can fix it. Could you pass me those tools over there?"

"You sure you know what you're doing?" JP grabbed a small container from his toolbox and passed it through the hole to Jeremy.

"No sweat!" Jeremy propped the flashlight against the ladder and retrieved a wire cutter from the container. He reached for the faulty wire, then thought better of it and asked, "Uh, is there another breaker or something down here?"

JP smiled. "Well, you ask the right questions. It's on the floor, between the tower and the well."

Jeremy looked down. "Could you get that?"

"I'm on it!" Ballistamon shouted from below. He was, apparently, because the power went out in the kitchen.

"Not better," mumbled Mimi, switching on JP's flashlight.

"I didn't know which switch was right, so I flipped all of them," Ballistamon said.

"So in other words, the whole tower's gone dark," JP muttered.

Tommy forced a grin. "Hope nobody's in the elevator."

It was an impatient few minutes for the trio in the kitchen, but with the power cut off, the right tools and enough light, it was a simple fix for Jeremy. He avoided falling off the ladder and replaced the wire with minimal fuss. Once he finished, he gave the signal to Ballistamon to restore the power. It had only been out for five minutes.

"All good," Jeremy said, returning the container to Tommy.

JP was busy checking the oven with Mimi. When it heated to the proper temperature promptly, JP nodded in satisfaction.

"My hero!" Mimi said, overjoyed.

Smirking, JP replied, "Heh. All in a day's work."

"Not you." Mimi turned to the wall. "Him!"

"Yeah..." JP walked up to the opening in the wall. Jeremy was still there. "That was some pretty nice work there, new kid."

Jeremy waved it off. "Oh, that was a piece of cake."

"Hey, how would you like to be my assistant? I can always use more help keeping things running around here."

"Hmm..." Jeremy pondered for a moment, then said, "I'll do it under one condition."

"What's that?"

"I heard you run a D&D group. I want in!"

JP grinned. "Jerry, you have yourself a deal!"

* * *

Christopher Aonuma was fascinated by what he was watching. This simple argument between the Otamamon and the Bakemon was totally meaningless. It was a shoddy cottage, but it was home for one group and apparently much-needed shelter for the other. The two sides were loud and rude to each other, but they hadn't come to blows. Yet.

He knew better than to get involved. He had nothing to gain and neither side had the power to escalate the conflict into anything that would threaten the world. At the same time, each was going to need a degree of strength to win out. He wanted to see if one of the sides was going to summon it. He also wondered if Mikey or any of the castle residents would have stepped in in this situation. If it had gotten hostile and the scary Bakemon started to overwhelm the harmless Otamamon, would they charge in and save the day? If it had somehow been the other way around, would they do the same thing?

"Don't get any ideas." Christopher frowned when he heard Davis's voice behind him. Both the Bakemon and Otamamon heard Imperialdramon's approach and ran into the cottage to hide.

"Are we not allowed to have ideas here?" Christopher replied. He could hear Davis and Ken approaching him.

Davis sneered. "You know what I mean. Just because one of the sides are ghosts doesn't mean they're wrong. We don't have to help the Otamamon."

"You seem to be confusing me for Mikey," Christopher said. "I wasn't going to get involved. Just waiting to see who'd lose their temper first."

"Well, we don't want them fighting either! Jeez, and you were just gonna watch that?"

Christopher pointed at the Digimon beside him. "MailBirdramon doesn't break up a fight without breaking a couple bones too."

Grumbling, Davis shouted, "Why did you come out here in the first place?!"

"What, we're not allowed to look around?"

"You don't know what's out here! There's these data stream things that can grab you and send you clear across the Digital World!"

"Last time someone flew into one of those, it took us three weeks to get him back," Ken said.

"Yeah, there's dangerous stuff out there."

Christopher raised an eyebrow. "Are you talking about that nasty-looking cyclone thing I saw in the distance? Yeah, I stayed away from it. Challenging stuff."

"Hey, we're just looking out for you! And making sure you don't screw anything up with these guys."

"I know better than to bother these pipsqueaks for no reason."

"Don't call them pipsqueaks!" Davis shouted.

Before this could escalate into a shouting match, Cody emerged from the bushes. "I talked to them and I think they reached an understanding. The Otamamon can stay but they know the Bakemon will try to scare them every so often. The Bakemon actually like having somebody to pester so it might work out."

Davis grinned. "Hey, well done!"

Christopher snickered. "What happened to not getting involved?"

"Cody was just mediating. That's different," Ken said.

"How?"

"Anyway..." Cody cleared his throat. "I got a buzz from Command. They want all four of us back as soon as possible."

"Gladly," Christopher muttered, jumping on MailBirdramon's back. "Can I fly myself or do you need to tow me?" MailBirdramon flew off before hearing an answer.

Davis and Ken watched him go. "Boy, he's gonna be a handful," Davis mumbled.

Ken shook his head. "He's not wrong, but I'm not a fan of the attitude."

"Want me to get the Bakemon to scare him?" Cody said, probably in jest. It was always hard to tell with him.

* * *

Nene Amano was able to relax for the first time since the Fusion Fighters arrived a day ago. The public bath was small, but surprisingly pleasant; Angie called it as good any she had found in the human world. Nene had been to many more in many luxurious locations, but even she insisted that this made her top ten.

It was a very standard arrangement, with a changing area and washing stations that led to the small pond against the cliff behind the castle. Boilers downstairs regulated the temperature, so it wasn't a natural hot spring, but the rocks, surroundings and irregular shape made it feel like one.

"Who uses the showers when this is here?" Angie said, very content. After helping Suzie move out of what was now their room, they learned that there were a couple showers at the top and bottom of Leo Tower. Neither planned to ever use them.

Nene stretched out, letting herself sink deeper into the water. "No problems, no worries... no men."

Just then, the door from the changing room flew open. The worries came back instantly; Nene and Angie clutched their towels.

Zoe, herself wearing just a towel, chuckled at their reaction. "It's just me." She sat down at one of the washing stations, pulled the towel off and started spraying herself with water. "Although I'm glad you saw which hours are for girls."

Nene and Angie looked at each other nervously. They should have recognized that there was only one changing room and therefore probably regulated.

"The last group to show up didn't see them," Zoe added. "When you meet Marcus, he'll tell you he hasn't lost a fight since he got here." She looked over her shoulder at them and smiled. "He's lying."

Angie snickered. Nene asked, "You're one of those that can turn into a Digimon, aren't you?"

"It wasn't me. Mimi has a strong right hook. Marcus was impressed." She laughed to herself, then sighed. "To be honest, I don't really turn into Kazemon anymore." She stared at the wall, the spray of the water hitting the floor. "It stopped being fun."

Nene nodded solemnly. "The thought of turning into a Digimon does seem a little shady."

Zoe remained silent as she finished washing, keeping her back to Nene and Angie the entire time. The two thought about conversation but they couldn't find any subject that would break the ice. She seemed to be lost in her thoughts anyway.

Several minutes later, Zoe put her towel back on and joined them in the bath. She let herself soak for a moment, then took a deep breath, eyes closed the entire time. Then they opened, and they looked at Nene and Angie. "So how are you enjoying things so far?"

They were startled at her sudden attempt at socialization. Nene was the first to reply, "It's been all right. It should get better now that we have a room."

"Where did they put you?"

"Leo Tower. Suzie's old room."

Zoe nodded. "So are you two sharing?"

"It seemed to be the easiest solution. We hear you're all very possessive about your rooms."

"Of course we are. Where else are you going to get some alone time without leaving the castle?"

"I suppose," Angie replied, shaking her head. "Anything to get away from the guys."

Cracking a half-smile, Zoe said, "Why are you getting away from the guys?"

"Are you kidding? You've got Takuya trying to convince us that sex isn't a big deal here, then you've got all the guys gawking at us from across the room." Angie gestured at Nene. "Nene's used to that sort of thing but I'm not."

Zoe raised an eyebrow at Nene, who only nodded and said, "You're quite pretty. How do you put up with it?"

Between Angie seemingly trying to imply something about Nene, Nene's oddly direct compliment, and their complaint in general, Zoe was bewildered. She replied honestly. "Put up with it? It's great."

Needless to say, Nene and Angie weren't impressed with the answer. Zoe explained, "Okay, the leering and stuff is bad. But you're the first new girls they've seen in years. We're curious about all of you." She looked up and asked, "Say are either of you two involved with Mikey?"

Angie glared back. "No. But you might have to peel him away from Yolei."

Zoe chuckled. "Enough said. But the truth is, no matter what the guys do, or if Takuya says something stupid... and he will... a lot... us girls are really the ones in control."

"Seriously? Feels like we're kinda outnumbered."

"We're totally outnumbered, and that's our biggest advantage."

Nene and Angie returned two blank stares. Zoe did some counting on her fingers. "With you two, there are now... eleven girls here. If any of those guys want dates, we're their only options, and we will be their only options for as long as we're here."

Nodding slowly, Nene said, "It's about scarcity."

Zoe smiled. "And Rika and Yoshi are on patrol a lot. And Suzie and Kari are too young for anything fun."

"Kari's what? Fifteen?" Angie asked.

"Fourteen. And yes, she's an officer," Zoe huffed. "Don't get me started. But if you take all that, these guys know that we don't have to put up with anything because we have far more options than they do."

"What if we just don't want to get involved with any of that stuff?"

Zoe shrugged. "There's no reason not to. The thing about the Digital World-"

Nene held up a hand. "We heard all that from Mikey. I wish we hadn't."

"Well, it's still your call. And everyone gets that." Zoe looked down at the water, frowning. "They can be idiots sometimes but everybody here is a good person. They wouldn't be here if they weren't. My guys are the biggest lunkheads here but I trust them with my life."

She looked up at Nene and Angie. "And I don't care what you say, that's a lot better than the way it is back home."

* * *

Davis Motomiya rushed into the hall the moment he arrived back at the castle. Ken, Cody and Christopher took their time. He found Takuya, Koji, Koichi, Joe and Ryo standing in front of the stage. Izzy and Tai were on the stage, Izzy pacing around with his tablet.

"Everything go well?" Tai asked Davis.

"Yeah, it's all good other than blondie's mouth. What's going on?" Davis asked.

Takuya scoffed. "Izzy's drawing names to figure out who has to room with Christopher and Jeremy."

"What?" Davis turned to Izzy and raised a fist. "Death to tyrants!"

"You're not helping, Davis," Izzy replied.

"Nice to see that the officers are unified," Koji deadpanned.

"You know what's funny?" Takuya crossed his arms and shook his head. "We all thought Takato was crazy when he let Marcus room with him. But Marcus is never here, but Takato's off the hook. Suddenly he's the smart one."

On stage, Tai watched Ken and Cody join the mob while Christopher stood off to a side. Under his breath, he said, "So can we start now?"

Izzy shook his head. "We're still waiting on JP. What are you doing up here anyway?"

"I'm here to enforce your decision. That's why you wanted me here, right?"

"I wanted you down here because I'm including all of the boys who have their own rooms in this drawing."

Tai nodded. "Yeah. Rowdy bunch. Good idea to have me-"

"Get down there, Tai."

"But I-"

Izzy glared back. "You're a boy who has your own room."

"You mean I have a one-in-nine chance of getting stuck with one of the new kids in my room?"

"Of course not." Izzy smirked. "It's two in ten."

Tai held his ground for a moment, but relented and left the stage. "Death to tyrants," he huffed.

"Where the heck is JP?" Ryo asked.

Izzy answered, "I did tell him to fetch-"

"We're here!" JP said, entering the hall with Jeremy. "Sorry we're late, just showing Jeremy where we keep the tools."

"What's going on?" Jeremy asked.

"They're picking people to room with us," Christopher said. "Now we know how much they really like us."

"Oh, is that all?" JP turned to Jeremy. "Wanna room with me?"

Jeremy nodded. "That works!"

JP turned to the stage and shouted, "Hey Izz! I'll take Jeremy if that's okay!"

Izzy looked at his tablet, but quickly turned back to JP and nodded. "Absolutely."

"So am I off the hook then?"

"Yes, but I still need that ten-sided die."

"Oh yeah, here you go!" JP lofted a die towards the stage. Izzy tried to catch it, fumbling it of course.

After retrieving it, Izzy dismissed JP and Jeremy and assigned the nine remaining candidates a number. "See, one in nine," Tai said, smug.

With the rules established and the numbers in place, Izzy stepped off the stage and joined the others, who formed a circle around him. He rolled the die, everybody crowded around it, and Izzy had to separate the masses to verify the result. The many shouts of "who had 2?" made it obvious before Izzy had visual.

"Two is..." He checked his tablet and announced, "Davis."

Davis's face had already turned green. He looked over to Christopher, who sneered back, rolling his eyes.

Even before any move happened, the hostility was apparent. One day in, it was clear the two did not see eye to eye. Everyone else in the room wondered whether this odd couple would be able to co-exist in a confined space for the foreseeable future.

Everyone with one exception. Ken stepped between them, turned to Izzy, raised a hand and shouted, "I volunteer as tribute!"

Izzy looked at Ken, then looked around to confirm that he wasn't the only one who saw that. "W... what?"

The blank stares finally got to Ken, who put his hand down. "Read a book, guys," he muttered, changing tact and announcing, "I'll take Christopher instead."

"Whoa, are you sure?" Davis asked.

"I feel like I'll have an easier time living with him than you, Davis," Ken replied. He turned around and smiled at Christopher. "Here, I'll show you where you'll be staying."

As Ken walked off, Christopher eyed the rest of the men. Most were confounded by what had just happened. "It's a movie now, too," Christopher said, following Ken out.

* * *

Angie Hinomoto spent the early evening hours wandering. While Jeremy was determined to explore every corner of the castle, Angie's motive was to take her mind off of everything. The more she thought about it, the more wrong things felt, and with so little control the only solution was to not think about it.

She was older than she was when she first went to the Digital World, and more comfortable being away from her family. While she acknowledged that she was a wreck for parts of the first trip, she never understood why that made her the weird one. Shouldn't it be natural to be homesick in that situation, making Mikey and Jeremy's lack of concern unusual? This castle was filled with Mikeys and Jeremys that didn't seem to register just how long they've been away from their families. As troubled as Zoe looked, it wasn't because she was here.

There were plenty of other problems. All these nice people failed to cooperate to make sure the Fusion Fighters had rooms. Talking to Zoe about the way the guys behaved was reassuring, but the fact that Angie needed it wasn't. There was also something Ewan had said about finding roles for themselves. However long they were stuck here, not having a purpose would make it seem all that much longer. In hindsight, Angie had never been convinced that she contributed all that much to the Fusion Fighters, and Mikey's attempts to argue otherwise had always come across as insincere. If she couldn't help her own team, how was she going to fit into a much larger group?

As she walked by the house for the Digimon, she realized that she found that odd as well. Everybody here was either close partners with or became a Digimon. Why separate them from the humans? She rarely saw any monsters inside the castle and that didn't make any sense. There was no reason for the two groups to be segregated, but nobody acted like anything was wrong. As she saw the wide open entrance to the house, she realized that Kari had never given them a proper tour of the building's interior. Angie decided to fix that.

Walking in, she realized one huge reason for the division: it was less a house and more a giant enclosed habitat. The dirt surface outside became thick grass inside; at points Angie had to brush it aside in order to get through and properly explore the landscape. And to her surprise, it was very much a landscape. A small wooded area, a lake, a cliff and caves all had their space in the building. The roof was glass, allowing full natural light to shine on this little paradise. The air even felt thicker than it did in the mostly dry castle.

The grasses gave way to an open field. Angie stepped out of it and saw a red insect Digimon hovering under a tree. It looked awfully familiar to her; she ran up to it, certain it wasn't dangerous. But as she neared it, she heard a shout: "Look out!"

Angie turned toward the sound of the voice but only saw a wall. Then she heard a cry from much closer and turned in time to see a Gatomon, claws extended inches away from Angie's face. Vines suspended Gatomon in midair. The vines pulled up, taking Gatomon with them into the leaves. Angie heard a loud crack from up there.

She looked up at Tentomon just as he flew into her chest, knocking her off her feet. She sat up in time to see an entire branch of the tree crash to the ground. Gatomon was under it, with a large bruise on her head. Palmon stood on top of the branch, pulling her vines away.

"That's never happened before," Palmon said. "Are you okay?"

Tentomon turned to Angie. "You really shouldn't wander around in here."

Gatomon groaned. Tentomon and Palmon helped get the branch off and hovered over her.

"What is going on?" Angie cried. One moment, Palmon was attacking Gatomon who was attacking Tentomon, and the next they were all worried about each other.

She nearly screamed when suddenly Kenta was standing next to her. "Angie, what are you even doing here?"

Palmon turned to Kenta. "My vines accidentally drove her head into the tree. Anything we can do?"

"Oh, um..." Kenta looked around. "I know there's a first aid kit somewhere around here..."

"Wait a second!" Angie grinned and pulled out her Fusion Loader. "I actually get to do this! Reload- Cutemon!"

As Cutemon healed Gatomon, Kenta said, "You have a healer? That's pretty useful."

"It is!" As Gatomon recovered, Angie turned back to Kenta. "But seriously, what's going on?"

Before Kenta would explain anything, he took her wrist and let her out of the habitat. He took her to a barely noticeable entrance that led to a back room. Unlike the clean natural feel the Digimon inhabited, the back was dank, filled with crowded shelves, bare wires and the sound of running water that Angie couldn't trace.

By the time he let go of her, she also realized that this was one of the guys eying her and Nene at breakfast. She took a couple steps back and said, "Okay, now spill it."

"Spill what?" Kenta was confused at her tone. "That's their place. We don't go in there unless we're picking someone up or fixing something. And they usually clean up for themselves now."

Angie didn't let up. "Why were they fighting each other?"

"Pouncing practice." Kenta showed Angie a small window. Gatomon was back on her feet, demonstrating her pounce for Cutemon. "Gatomon was trying to get to Tentomon before Palmon could grab her. She's been having trouble with midair targets."

Both Tentomon and Palmon were watching the display. Angie calmed down. "So that's why we don't go in there."

"One reason, yeah. They're Digimon, and they're used to having to fight. So sometimes they tend to, you know, roughhouse. They want to keep their reactions sharp and stay focused in case we ever need them."

"I guess that makes sense." Angie stepped away from the window. "That's a nice place you guys built for them."

Kenta started to walk down the hallway. "Oh, they built that themselves. We're comfortable sleeping in a bed under a roof. Digimon not so much. Everybody still spends plenty of time with their partners, but at the end of the day we all want to be somewhere that feels like home."

As he walked, MarineAngemon floated towards him from the opposite direction. The little Digimon stopped in front of Kenta and said, "Fish."

Kenta's shoulders slumped. "Already?"

"What's up?" Angie said.

MarineAngemon looked at Angie, then back at Kenta. "New?"

"Yeah, you met her last night, remember?" Kenta turned to Angie. "Hey, could you help us for a second?"

Angie reluctantly agreed; too much of Mikey had rubbed off on her to say no. Even if it did somehow involve fish.

Kenta and MarineAngemon led her to a series of water tanks, all hidden behind a waterfall in the habitat. Behind them was a door outside. Kenta opened it and asked for Angie's help carrying in a large cooler. "I don't want to know what's in here, do I?" Angie asked.

"I think you know what's in there already," Kenta replied, shutting the door behind him. "The good news is that MarineAngemon will move the fish into the water. We just need to open up the hatch." Kenta gave said hatch a tug.

At least he tried to. It was jammed. "Aw, nuts," he muttered. "This stupid thing never opens right. I'll have to call JP."

Kenta leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, still annoyed. "That's the one thing about this place. The Digimon mostly take care of themselves, but stuff still needs to be restocked or fixed or someone needs to be healed. Everybody else forgets that it still needs some attention. I try to come in every day to check up on things, but it's an uphill battle." His eyes opened and found Angie. "Now if someone else were to help me... say somebody with a healing Digimon..."

Angie folded her arms. "I don't know..." She wanted to bring up that morning, but she saw just how neglected the back hallways looked. She also saw just how valuable Cutemon had been at that moment. Kenta did seem to be overwhelmed by his duties, plus nobody else seemed to realize what all he did. Equally important, she was being offered a role. She would have been stupid to turn it down.

* * *

Ewan Amano watched nightfall outside with Mikey and Shoutmon. Everybody had recommended it, but Ewan assumed that was due to some picturesque way the sun fell under the mountains. The sun was still where it had been when he woke up. In fact, even though it was well into the evening, the sky was still as bright as it had been in the afternoon.

"Maybe we're early," Mikey suggested.

Then it happened. Darkness swept across the horizon in one smooth stroke. In seconds, the entire sky was dark, save for three bright moons of different colors. No stars, just a few twinkles of twitching data here and there. It took their eyes several seconds to adjust to the lack of light.

"Whoa..." the three mumbled.

The lights had already been turned on in the castle; undoubtedly the residents inside were used to the phenomenon. It was no big deal to them.

"That's day two." Ewan sighed. "I don't think we've gotten anywhere."

Mikey nodded in agreement. "This can't be our life. I'm not the type to just sit around playing cards all day."

"It's funny..." Shoutmon said. "Sometimes as king things would get so crazy I'd have killed for a day like this. I'm starting to miss the madhouse."

"Just gotta find some way to help out around here. It'll just take time, that's all."

"At least we can help fight. What are Jeremy and Angie gonna do?"

Behind them, they heard a door open. They didn't notice the side entrance to the Digimon habitat until Jeremy and Angie walked out of it. Angie held a can, trying to touch it as little as possible without dropping it.

"Yeah, every time you open it, if you could put some of that grease on the hinges, it should take care of the jamming," Jeremy told her.

"Like I'm going anywhere near that hatch," Angie said, setting it down inside. "But I'll let Kenta know next time he plays fishmonger, thanks."

"All in a day's work, ma'am!"

"What the heck are you two doing?" Mikey said.

Jeremy and Angie finally noticed them. Angie put her hands on her hips. "Well, unlike some of us, Jeremy and I have work to do."

"These freeloaders- what are we going to do with them?" Jeremy said, clicking his tongue.

"Right?"

"You two have jobs?" Ewan asked.

"Yep! I'm the assistant caretaker of the Digimon habitat."

With a smile, Jeremy added, "And I'm second engineer under JP."

Mikey, Ewan and Shoutmon stood there for a moment as Jeremy and Angie puffed out their chests. Finally, Shoutmon was the first to slump his shoulders. "You guys were playing cards then?"

"You want in?" Mikey asked, sullen.

"If you don't mind." The three of them shuffled off in resignation.

Jeremy and Angie grinned at each other and fist bumped.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 3: "This Fantasy World"**  
A horrifying attack on a nearby village sends Takuya's team into action, where Yolei confronts him about his suggestion to Mikey. Izzy is left caring for Kari after she is shaken by a disturbance in the communication system. Tommy accidentally finds out about Koichi's girlfriend.

" _I don't like the smell of uh oh."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
Despite some of the issues with the dub of Fusion, one of the positives that came out of it is Jeremy. What was one a pretty stiff rival character turned into a fun geek that was far easier to root for. Some of the other character changes in the dub, particularly with Mikey, are less noticeable but will still be utilized here.

In the Xros Wars manga, Nene enters a forced digixros, essentially turning her into a Digimon, with Shademon.

MarineAngemon isn't one of the more fun dub changes, but we can still have fun with his monosyllabic, ambiguous speech pattern.

dWvPFRX4ds0  
B001KSWENW


	4. 03- This Fantasy World

**Neverworld**

 _Yes I like playing Dungeons and Dragons with you._  
 _Yes I do, yes I like playing Dungeons and Dragons._  
 _But I want to get you out of this fantasy world and into my fantasy,_  
 _and into my bed, where we could have sex._  
 _\- The Doubleclicks, "This Fantasy World"_

 **Episode 3**

JP Shibayama prided himself on being an affable, entertaining, and above all fair dungeon master. Access to television and movies was unreliable in the Digital World, and for some reason video games suffered from terrible lag. That made his games a critical entertainment source for everybody inclined to sling dice. It was vital that he make sure they all have a good time.

That put him in a tough situation when it came to arbitrating Jeremy's move. In a narrow corridor blocked by a troll, Jeremy wanted his level three fighter to jump at the wall, kick off it, spin around and in one motion slice at the minotaur king behind the troll. JP wanted Jeremy to enjoy his first session, but this was absurd and probably physically impossible.

"I can't let you do that. Even if that were possible, your character wouldn't be at a high enough level for that."

Jeremy continued to argue for his case. "Selim Montes is a skilled swordsman. Of course he can do that!"

"I've never seen a swordsman do that," Kenta said.

"Let's fix that! JP, stand by the wall!" Jeremy stood up and walked to the far wall. JP shrugged and did the same, standing a few yards away.

Jeremy yelled and charged at the wall next to JP, leaping as he arrived. He kicked off the wall, using the momentum to spin in midair, mimicking a sword slash as he landed.

"Now imagine Selim doing that." Jeremy smiled, holding his pose.

The other players applauded. "Well, I'm sold!" Takato said.

Yolei grinned. "From now on I say we have to act out our crazy attacks."

"Okay, okay..." JP returned to his seat, as did Jeremy. "It still looks pretty tricky, so it'll be a -2 penalty to pull that off. Fair?"

"Yep!" Jeremy exaggerated his throwing motion, then released his D20. His moment of triumph collapsed on itself when he rolled a 4.

JP nodded. "Selim falls over right next to the troll."

Jeri looked around the table. "In other words, Jeremy can do that move, but his character can't." Everybody, including Jeremy, had a good laugh.

Yolei made sure the troll didn't kill Jeremy's character, Tommy weakened it with a spell and Jeri delivered the killing blow. The minotaur was still there.

Kenta raised a hand. "Hold on, can we take a bathroom break?"

"Sure," JP replied as Kenta stood up and walked away. "Tommy, think you can grab another round of snacks?"

Tommy frowned, checking his D-Tector. "Actually, it's getting pretty late. I need some sleep. I'm on lunch duty."

"I guess we can stop here if we need to." JP stretched his arms. "Man, it feels like we didn't get as much done tonight."

"We do have an extra player," Takato said. "Jeremy's great and all, but it kinda drags with six."

"Actually, um..." Jeri's head dropped. "I was thinking of dropping out."

JP sat forward, frowning. "Aw, why? I thought you were having fun."

"It's a lot of fun. But it does wear me out. And it's not fair to expect the other girls to cover for me. I just remembered we're expecting a big shipment down the river in a few hours. I enjoy it, but it's not worth all the problems it causes the next morning."

"Well, I guess that makes sense. Shame though, because you do a great job with your character. Paladins are hard to play, but Leon turned out to be pretty awesome."

Jeri's eyes were on the floor, a coy smile on her face. "He certainly is."

"So, we just killing him off or what?" Jeremy blurted.

JP, Takato, Tommy and Yolei's eyes grew wide as they stared at him, all nervously turning to Jeri. Her smile faded, but she calmly replied, "Why don't I play through the rest of this dungeon so he can retire with honor?"

"Good plan," JP squeaked. Takato sighed in relief. "You and Tommy can go to bed. We'll take care of this mess."

"Can I go too?" Takato asked.

JP stared at Takato for a moment. Takato's head and eyes shifted ever so slightly towards Jeri, causing JP to grin and answer, "Sure. Jeremy and I can clean up."

"What?!" Jeremy exclaimed.

Takato and Jeri headed back to their rooms, as did Tommy and Yolei in the other direction. Once out of the castle and on the bridge, Takato asked, "So why are you really quitting?"

The question startled Jeri. Her head jolted up and she faced him. "Like I said, I have too much to do to stay up all night playing games."

"It wasn't because Leon was a saving throw away from-"

"No," she answered firmly. "We knew there was a chance when I made him. All in all I think it was a good experience to play him like that."

They entered the tower and called for the elevator. While waiting for it, Jeri looked up at the Leomon mural. She always did.

"Can you just let him go like this?" Takato asked.

"Who?"

"Leon."

Jeri smiled. "Yes. I'm ready."

They boarded the elevator when it arrived and Takato pushed for the third floor as always. The doors closed and the elevator rose. He eyed Jeri. This was the moment. Her room was on the fourth floor. It was her decision whether or not she pushed the button.

"I understand if you're tired," Takato said.

She put her hands on his shoulders and kissed him. The doors opened to the third floor. "And I understand that you always get excited whenever you have to save my character," she said. She took his hand and led him to his room.

* * *

Joe Kido's position was normally the least complicated to explain: he was the doctor. He treated both humans and Digimon for injuries as they came up. He would also occasionally have to diagnose and treat assorted Digital World viruses, of which there were a few (despite them having different causes, symptoms and treatments, every one of them had been dubbed "digi-flu"). Thomas had been able to develop immunizations for other local diseases, so Joe was also tasked with distributing them.

While it was a specialized position, and Joe was always reading up on better and more advanced practices, there was one additional line in the job description that always felt out of place- river duty. Any time a shipment was due to come down the river, Joe was supposed to help.

This had more to do with his partner's Champion form than him. "Lovely day to spend on the shore, isn't it Joe?" Gomamon said in his usual sarcastic tone. Joe grumbled. The "port" where they received these shipments was little more than a clearing in the middle of a large patch of damp vegetation. Everything, including the air itself, was soaking wet.

"Yeah, just how I want to spend my morning- slogging my way out here and standing around for an hour. Would you call this a jungle, a marsh or a swamp?"

"Eh, it's more of a flood plain. I might go for a swim while we wait. Care to join me?"

"No thank you," Joe replied flatly. Gomamon jumped in the river, splashing Joe in the process.

Joe backed away and turned around, too late to avoid the bulk of the spray. As he tried to wring the water out of his shirt, he saw Sora and Biyomon approach.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "You forgot to wear clothes you don't mind getting ruined."

"All of the clothes I don't mind getting ruined ended up in the donation box for the new kids." Sora and Biyomon walked past him to the shoreline. "So where's Jeri?"

"She's... running late this morning." Sora said, waving at Gomamon.

"Game night?"

"Yeah. We had a conversation about that."

"I hope you did. I was getting used to not being here." Since the tamers' D-Powers had the ability to work with willing Digimon beyond their own partners, Jeri had practiced with Gomamon for the sole purpose of bypassing Joe in this process.

"The good news is that the new kids are coming down to help us move everything," Sora said.

"Maybe one of them will be wearing your old clothes," Biyomon said cheerfully.

The Fusion Fighters arrived twenty minutes later (Jeremy, in fact, was wearing Joe's old clothes), Shoutmon already out of Mikey's Fusion Loader. As Sora expected, Suzie and Lopmon led the way. She did not expect Tai and Agumon to be following them.

"What brings you out here?" Sora asked.

Tai shrugged. "Just felt like helping the new group get all their stuff moved in."

"Slow day upstairs?" asked Shoutmon.

With a nod, Tai said, "Yeah, that too." He noticed that Sora, taking her own advice, was wearing a faded t-shirt and frayed jean shorts. "Thats a different look for you," he told her.

She folded her arms. "Tai, at what point has commenting on what I'm wearing ever worked out for you? I always wear this on delivery days."

"Go easy on him, Sora," Lopmon chided. "I'm not used to working class life either."

Tai blinked. Working class life? "That... kinda stings, Lopmon."

"We got incoming!" Gomamon shouted. Upstream, a small barge floated down, completely packed with boxes of all sizes, several stacked on top of each other. The boat was occupied only by two Muchomon, small red Rookie-level birds that wouldn't pose much of a threat if actually attacked. There was no sign of where the barge actually originated, and the only mark on the boxes was a smiling face.

Christopher and the other Fusion Fighters watched the barge arrive. "So we need to get that over here?"

Suzie nodded. "Yep, that's where Joe and-"

But Christopher was already on it. "Reload- Deckerdramon!" The giant alligator was in the water and swimming towards the barge.

Mikey smirked. "Nice to see him again." Christopher nodded. "Need a hand? Jeremy, can I borrow Ballistamon?"

Jeremy transferred him over and Mikey digifused Shoutmon X2+, complete with Chibitortomon's shell and swimming ability. He and Deckerdramon had no trouble getting the contents of the barge to shore.

Joe moaned. "So you really didn't need me after all."

"Are you kidding?" Suzie replied. "Look at all those boxes! Start hauling!"

* * *

Davis Motomiya was technically in charge while Tai was outside. This would have been more fun if he had anything worthwhile to do. Mornings were a mixed bag. While the officers were up at Command monitoring the Digital World for most of the day, the room was vacant overnight. Only something as dramatic as a literal explosion somewhere would set off any alarms. But Tai and Thomas always reviewed all the data collected while they were out in case they missed something more subtle. Usually there was something worth following up on, and occasionally something that immediately prompted a call to Takuya's team. Today was bone dry.

With that in mind and the novelty of sitting at Tai's desk already worn away, Davis returned to his seat. Since Kari had her headset on to listen for activity, all he could do was bug the smart guys. "So how bad was the first night for you two?"

"It was quite startling indeed," Thomas said. "I never would have pegged Izzy as a supporter of Neisser's concept of cognitive psychology."

Izzy held up a hand. "Like I said, let me read up on embodiment perspective before you apply any false labels."

Davis stared at them, dumbfounded. Then he nodded. "Yeah, see I told you it wasn't going to work."

Turning to Davis, Izzy asked, "Any updates from Ken and Christopher?"

With a nod, Davis answered, "Turns out both of them can in fact go twelve hours without speaking. I wouldn't have been able to do that. Ken really took a bullet for me."

"I hope you thanked him for that."

"Of course! Who do you think I am, Ryo?"

Izzy chuckled and turned to Thomas. "See, Neisser would have some interesting things to say about Ryo."

The two continued their conversation as the elevator doors opened. Zoe had a tray of coffee mugs, which she delivered to each of the four officers. When she got to Davis, she asked him, "No Tai?"

Davis looked at his coffee. "What? If they can add chai to this, I want as much as they can put in."

Just then, Kari shrieked, stood up, threw her headset off and backed straight into the wall, falling over. She clutched her head and started to hyperventilate. Davis and Izzy's first instincts were to rush up to check on her.

Zoe's first instinct was to sit in Kari's chair and see what she had heard. She winced immediately and started frantically pointing at Thomas.

"What's going on?" Thomas asked.

"It's... it's bad. Someone's being attacked." She shook her head. "Sounds pretty ugly."

Davis left Kari to Izzy and stood up, approaching Thomas's desk. "You calling the response team?"

Thomas was, but asked, "Should we be deploying the whole team without Tai?"

"Oh, Tai's gonna know about it. If he wants to scale it back, he'll be up here in a bit."

Turning around, Davis saw that Kari was still in bad shape. He called for the elevator and told Izzy, "Hey, take her downstairs so she can cool off. We're gonna have company."

* * *

Tai Kamiya did not regret helping out, despite having to carry a giant box of canned food for almost a mile. Along with beds, clothes and other assorted items for the six new arrivals, the shipment included replenishments for the kitchen and habitat. He was surprised the usual team of Jeri, Sora and Suzie were capable of handling the routine delivery on their own.

The Digimon contributed, of course. Everybody's partners carried something, and Biyomon even saw fit to digivolve. Christopher and Nene contributed some of their forces, Shoutmon X2 stuck around, and Angie threw in Dorulumon to help as well.

"This isn't going to be a regular thing, is it?" Dorulumon asked. He tried to shift the ropes around his shoulders into a more comfortable position, as he was towing two beds behind him. It wasn't the physical exertion that bothered him, but the fact that it was dull manual labor.

"Hang in there," Angie said. "It's all about getting back to the castle and getting us some decent clothes." She sighed. "Never thought I'd be this happy to wear a bra again."

"You weren't wearing a bra this whole time?" Mikey asked. Angie shook her head. "I never noticed."

Angie stopped and glared at him, but Mikey kept walking. He said, "Nene must have figured something out."

"A lot of tape," Nene replied.

Once Angie started walking again, Mikey asked, "Hey, can I keep Dorulumon after this? I feel like the best way I can help is being on a patrol team or something and I want to be able to fuse Shoutmon X4 for that."

"Fine by me," Angie said, dismayed at Mikey's effortless conversation swerve.

"I'm all for it, but you'd better run it by Cutemon," Dorulumon added.

"Sweet." Mikey picked up the pace and was soon walking alongside Tai. He was right behind Sora, trying to simultaneously watch the path ahead and making sure Birdramon didn't crash into MailBirdramon or Sparrowmon.

She also had to field questions from Christopher and Nene. "So who decides who gets what around here?" Christopher asked.

"Every week you're allowed to order a small amount of items for your own personal use," Sora answered. "You could also save up and get something bigger if you wanted to."

"Are we on a tight budget here?" asked Nene.

Sora tried to shrug, but couldn't with the amount of weight in her hands. "We don't know actually. Anything we ask for we get. We're not sure where it comes from."

"So why don't we just get everything we want?"

"Tai?"

On cue, Tai was there with an answer. "Well, it's sort of a way to make sure people don't slack off or break the rules. We've got to work together and treat each other right, you know?"

"Sounds like a carrot or a stick to me," muttered Christopher.

Mikey sensed Tai's discomfort and jumped in. "I hope you don't think we're slacking off. You got any plans for how you want us to help out? You just saw how useful digifuse can be."

Tai nodded. "I'm sure it is, and I'm sure your team is strong enough to do anything. It's just a question of what we need right now. Marcus and them seem to have everything covered on regular patrol and Takuya's team is more than enough for responding to emergencies. We even have Keenan doing really advance scouting work. Infiltration and spying and stuff like that."

"Infiltration and spying? That sounds like something for you, Nene."

Nene smiled politely. "Thanks, but I'm sure this Keenan person has it well covered."

"We'll figure something out," Tai said. "The last thing we want is your team's power going to waste."

When they arrived at the castle, Jeri was present, alert and ready to help inventory. Ever professional, she stood upright with a smile on her face. In a loud, authoritative voice, she said, "All right, obviously we have a lot to process, so make room. Food over there, miscellaneous supplies over there and items for the new arrivals everywhere else."

Sora set her box in the food pile and handed Jeri a packing slip. "You're more awake than I expected," she said.

Jeri scanned the slip, mumbling, "I got almost no sleep and I may collapse any moment. Have I mentioned that Mimi makes fantastic coffee?"

As the full convoy started to arrive, an alarm bell started ringing throughout the castle, delivering a single, high-pitched monotone beeping every second. Everybody stopped at once, but Jeri barked, "That's not us, keep going! That's good right there, Jeremy!"

Ewan looked up at the alarm. "One-tone beep every second... so that's response team only?"

"Very good," Tai mumbled. "Although I should get up there too." He handed his (very heavy) box to Joe and ran towards the entrance.

Then he stopped himself and turned around. "Hey Mikey!" he called. "Why don't you come too? And bring your Digimon."

* * *

Upstairs, Takuya was already in the middle of a briefing when Tai and Mikey arrived. "...the most important thing is determining who's responsible," Thomas concluded.

"What did I miss?" Tai asked.

"Too much for me to repeat right now. From the sound of it, we need to send the full team and they should leave immediately."

"I trust you, but I'd like Mikey to go with to get a taste of things." Tai noticed that Zoe was in at the communications station. "Where's Kari?"

Thomas replied, "Sounded like the initial attack was a bit gruesome. She's downstairs cooling off." Zoe turned around and gave Takuya a look. Takuya nodded and cracked a half-smile.

"All right." Tai turned to Takuya. "I don't want to keep you any longer. You can explain everything to Mikey on the way."

"Yes, sir," Takuya replied, stepping into the elevator with Mikey. Once the doors closed, he rubbed his hands together. "All right, finally some action. It was getting pretty dull."

Mikey frowned. "I don't know if I'd be so excited about an attack if it freaked out Kari that much."

Takuya snorted. "Everything freaks out Kari. Zoe seemed to be on top of things." As the elevator neared the ground floor, he said, "Just so you know, once these doors open, I'm sprinting outside so you'll need to keep up."

"You don't have to worry about me."

They were true to their words; Takuya broke into a run and Mikey was right behind him. They had to navigate their way around the mass of boxes in the courtyard and the people and Digimon sorting through them, but they both weaved their way around the obstacles without knocking over too many. They reached the front gate in time to see the DNA digivolution into Imperialdramon.

Davis noticed Mikey right behind Takuya. "Tagging along?"

"Wouldn't miss it," Mikey said. Along with Davis and Ken, the rest of Takuya's team were already on board- Koji, Yolei, Cody, Takato and three Digimon.

As Takuya and Mikey boarded, Ken gave the signal to take off. Davis looked around and grinned. "Ever seen this many goggles in one place?"

"Just once," Mikey mumbled to himself as Imperialdramon rose above the castle walls. He saw Jeremy, Angie, Nene and Ewan watching them leave, waving back at him. He sighed and faced forward.

"So Takuya," Yolei said. "What's this about telling Mikey to stop by my room at night?"

Takuya's eyes widened. So did Mikey's.

* * *

Izzy Izumi had never been construed as the sympathetic one. He, along with Thomas, were the voices of reason, the logical compass that prevented the team from straying off course. That's why he didn't protest when Davis commanded him to take Kari downstairs. It was sound logic: Takuya would soon be at Command to get briefed on his assignment and Tai needed to be in the loop. Kari's state was a distraction that could steer both into overreacting. Izzy was the logical choice to escort her as Davis acted as commander while Tai was away, Thomas was the primary adviser on outside assignments and Zoe needed to fill in for Kari herself.

It wasn't until the elevator doors closed that he realized that all this logic added up to him being responsible for guiding Kari through this panic attack. The floor below Command was reserved for a records archive, the servers that networked Command with the surrounding area, and other assorted storage. It also proved to be a useful place for the command team to take a breather. Though it amounted to little more than a giant closet, they outfitted it with a couch, a bookshelf and a coffee maker.

The couch seemed like a good place to start. Izzy held Kari's shoulders and led her there. Her hands still shook and her breathing was labored. They sat, not sure what to say in this situation, or even if it was right for him to still be holding her. If it was, he was certain holding her shoulders wasn't helping.

After a minute of silence, her breathing slowed and quieted, though her hands still shook. Izzy sensed the opening, and said, "Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. "All the screaming. The fire. They were helpless. Why?"

"Hopefully Takuya will find some answers. Do you need some water or something?" She shook her head again.

"I don't know if I'm cut out for this." Izzy gulped. This was getting worse. Calming her down from a moment of intense horror was bad enough, but a crisis of confidence on top of that?

Izzy's only friend was logic. "I think this demonstrates that you're the best one for this job." She looked up at him. The pain on her face and the tears waiting for their cue made him look away. Facing forward, he explained, "That system is very difficult to read. The only impulses are sound frequencies and there are so many of them that it's easy to miss something. There aren't many people who possess the empathy needed to understand which signals are important. You hear things that no one else can."

"Anybody would have heard that." Her head fell into his chest, her right hand on his leg.

He nodded. "The only downside is when something this overt happens. It's like those Flash videos that trick you into paying close attention before screaming at you."

Izzy tried to figure out where his hands were supposed to go. One found her back, the other her head. He rubbed both gently. "We really do need you. I'm sorry this had to happen." He could hear her sobbing, but couldn't think of anything else to say. All he could do was ride it out, holding her until she could move on.

He didn't know how long it took, maybe a minute or so, but eventually Kari did stop. She remained nuzzled in his chest, but she heaved a sigh and the crying ended. Fishing for anything to break the silence, he said, "Did you want to go downstairs? Get something to eat? Take a walk? Maybe we can convince Mimi to let you pick the menu." It sounded stupid the moment it came out.

Kari shook her head. "I don't want to trouble her. I think I'll be okay." She looked up at him. The tears weren't that apparent and there was a hint of a smile. "I just need a moment. Thanks for being here." She kissed him on the cheek, her hand pressing against his leg to support her.

Her head found his shoulder and her eyes closed. She was never going to fall asleep in this position, but she was now at peace, taking her moment to abandon her problems before returning to her post. Izzy was ultimately successful at his job, unsure as he was at how he achieved it, but now it was his turn to worry. He wasn't sure exactly when it had happened, but he certainly sensed it and it certainly bothered him. Izzy continued to hold Kari close, struggling to process the fact that he was falling for her.

* * *

Koji Minamoto would have been inclined to say something if Takuya and Yolei's arguing hadn't been so damn entertaining. It was terribly unprofessional to begin with, especially since they were approaching the ruins of what sounded like a truly heinous attack. It was also Mikey's first experience on an assignment and Takuya should have been trying to put his best foot forward. But their very public bickering about such a private matter, even throwing around Mikey's name like he wasn't there, was so ridiculous that Koji could only sit back and watch his teammate dig a deeper grave for himself.

It was also entirely possible that everybody who had lived in this smoking pile of rubble was now dead. It wasn't a largely populated village, but held a lot of residences in a small area. Some of the buildings, namely the ones in the center of town, were still standing, although a few fires still raged. For all they knew, this had been an unimportant community filled with unimportant Digimon. There were undoubtedly villains cruel enough to do something like this, but with the digidestined around it would have been suicide to do it unprovoked.

Once Imperialdramon landed and its occupants stepped on the surface, Takuya seemed to respect the gravity of the situation. "All right- Koji and Cody, see if you can figure a way to put out these fires. Takato and Guilmon- try to sniff out some survivors. Hawkmon- can you go overhead?"

"Digi-Armor Energize!" Yolei shouted, commanding Hawkmon to evolve into Halsemon.

The moment Halsemon flew off, Yolei turned back to Takuya. "Don't think we're finished!"

Takuya faced forward, still surveying the damage, but answered, "Let's put it this way- if Mikey had actually showed up at your door, what would you have done?"

Yolei stopped and blushed, stealing a glance at Mikey. Mikey decided it was a great time to take an interest in what Takato was doing.

"That's beside the point!" Yolei shouted back.

Takato was busy watching Guilmon smell things. Mikey found it fascinating. "Is he finding anything?" Mikey asked.

"I'm finding lots of things," Guilmon replied. "They hurt my nose."

"There used to be plenty of Digimon here," Takato said. "It's finding ones that are still alive that's hard."

Mikey looked at Takuya and Yolei, then turned back to Takato. "So out of curiosity, were those two ever a, uh, you know...?"

"Gee, how did you figure that out?" Takato answered dryly. "That was a couple years ago. That imploded quick. So do you really like Yolei?"

"I don't think it matters. She told me she has a boyfriend."

"I told you, I have a boyfriend!" shouted Yolei.

Mikey pointed at her. "See?"

"Wait!" Takuya exclaimed. Everybody froze, even Guilmon. In the moment of silence, everybody assumed Takuya had heard something and wanted to hear it again for verification. Takuya had indeed, but started laughing instead. "Of course! I'm such an idiot! Of course you have a boyfriend! And what a great boyfriend it is too! Congrats you two!" He resumed his march, Yolei following behind him, confused.

Guilmon resumed sniffing. "What was that all about?" Mikey asked Takato.

"My guess is he thinks he figured out who Koichi's girlfriend is," Takato answered. "She's not with Koichi. She's with my friend Henry on patrol. But it shut him up so we're gonna let him think what he wants."

"Good plan," Mikey said with a nod.

* * *

The fires were small and scattered. Koji and Cody doubted they were likely to spread, but wanted them extinguished all the same. If there were any survivors, they would be huddled in the few buildings still standing and there was always a chance of the flames reaching. Koji did not expect that to be a problem, but neither Cody nor Armadillomon budged.

Koji looked down at Armadillomon. "Aren't you going to digivolve?"

"What for?" Armadillomon replied.

Koji looked back at the fire. "One of your forms is water-based, right?"

"Sure is!"

"And he has a water attack."

"Sure does!"

Koji looked at Armadillomon again and pointed at the fire.

Cody sighed. "His water attack is actually an energy projectile. He doesn't actually shoot water."

Armadillomon snickered. "Yeah, it's not like Submarimon has a ballast tank or anything."

"So how do we put this fire out?" Koji asked.

Cody scratched his chin. "Well, the Digi-Egg of Reliability usually forms water-based Digimon. I could transfer it over to Yolei."

"Good plan." Armadillomon thought for a moment. "Let's see... Hawkmon and Reliability is Orcamon."

With his D-Terminal, Cody looked it up and frowned. "Orcamon also has no water attacks."

Grumbling, they looked around the village for anything useful, only finding a few buckets. Koji spotted Halsemon overhead and flagged him down.

"Did you see any water sources around here?" Koji asked.

"Only a river, but it's about a mile away," Halsemon replied.

"It'll have to do." Koji grabbed the buckets and hopped on.

"We'll stay and dig a trench to prevent the fire from going anywhere," Cody suggested.

As they took off, Koji called Takuya on his D-Tector. "Takuya, I'm stealing Halsemon to get some water. Cody's staying here."

"Roger that. We're not picking up anything on the outskirts so we'll be up there soon. If you need to go back for more we'll put Yolei on it."

"You'll put me on what now?" Koji overheard Yolei shout.

Halsemon reached the river in no time and Koji had no trouble filling all of the buckets with water. It was getting them back on Halsemon and keeping them full that proved to be the problem. After nearly spilling them, Koji shook his head. "Halsemon... you're gonna hate me for this." He set them down and held out his D-Tector. "Execute- Spirit Evolution!"

Lobomon hoisted the buckets easily and mounted Halsemon, who strained under the additional weight.

Halsemon grunted. "Yes... I hate you for this."

* * *

Takuya, Yolei, Takato and Mikey ended up near Cody and Digmon as they tried to keep the fire in check until Koji returned. While Takuya and Yolei joined Cody, Guilmon finally picked up a scent and pointed at a wooden barn across from one of the larger fires.

"In there," he said.

"Good job, buddy." Takato put his hands on one of the door handles, but stopped and nervously chuckled. "Of course, we have no way of knowing whether it's someone to fight or someone to rescue."

"Nope," Mikey said, throwing the other door open anyway and marching in.

"Hey, wait a second!" After stumbling, Takato went in after Mikey, but thankfully the scent was for rescue. Five little balls were sitting in a corner. Four of them were black, likely Botamon, huddled together and crying. The fifth, a Pabumon, was behind them, shivering. The walls around them were black with pock marks, slashes and other signs of either battle or outright slaughter.

Takato wasn't finished lecturing Mikey. "You shouldn't just barge in without-"

Mikey was already approaching the Botamon. "Hey guys, what happened?"

"Something smells funny in here," Guilmon said.

After sniffing the air, Takato nodded. "Oh yeah... it smells like... uh oh..."

"I don't like the smell of uh oh."

"Mikey! I think this is a-" Takato's shout was interrupted by the four alleged Botamon all developing a devilish grin and shooting out of the floor. They were attached to petals and thorny vines, two of which wrapped themselves around Mikey and lifted him off the ground. Mikey's Fusion Loader crashed onto what was left of the floor. The rest of Blossomon burst through the back wall.

"I'll save him!" Guilmon shouted. "Pyro-"

"No!" Takato held a hand in front of Guilmon. "That smell was gasoline! The walls are covered in it! No pyro!" He reached in his pocket and found a card. "First thing's first- Digi-Modify! Speed activate!" With a slash of his card, his partner was using a speed boost to dart around Blossomon's tendrils... and right under and past Mikey.

"Uh, Takato?" Mikey asked, still pretty well tied up.

While Guilmon occupied Blossomon, Takuya rushed through the door. "Looks like we found a culprit. Need a hand?"

Takato kept watching Guilmon. "Yes, but-"

"Execute- Spirt Evolution!" Suddenly, Takuya was Agunimon. "Pyro-"

"NO PYRO!" Takato jumped in front of Agunimon. "I just explained that to Guilmon! Fire will send the whole place up!"

"I'm a spirit of fire! Fire's all I've got!"

Guilmon darted around all of Blossomon's attacks and rushed back to Takato. In his hands were both the Fusion Loader and the Pabumon, which leaped into Takato's arms. Takato put the baby on his shoulder and held up another card. "All right, now Digi-Modify! Digivolution activate!"

"Guilmon digivolve to... Growlmon!" Growlmon charged forward. "Dragon Slash!" The (non-pyro) attack slashed off two of Blossomon's tendrils and freed Mikey, who scrambled back to Takato and Agunimon.

"Sorry about that." Takato patted Pabumon's head, only to realize its whole mass was gooey. "Couldn't leave this guy behind." Mikey could only smile at him.

"Or you could say you can't turn your back on it," Agunimon told Takato.

Mikey chuckled. "Has a nice ring to it."

Growlmon had been engaging Blossomon, but the difference in level had become apparent. In time, Blossomon had wrapped its tendrils around Growlmon and threw him to the floor in front of Takato, Mikey and Agunimon.

Mikey turned to Agunimon. "Mind if I give it a shot?"

Agunimon shrugged. "Ask Takato."

Takato had run up to get Growlmon back to his feet, but turned back to toss Mikey his Fusion Loader. "No pyro."

"No problem." Mikey caught it and held it out. He still had this part down. "Shoutmon! Ballistamon! Dorulumon! Starmon! Pickmons! Digifuse!"

Shoutmon X4 joined the battle. "Nice..." Takato and Agunimon both mumbled.

Between Shoutmon X4 and Growlmon, the battle was a formality. Blossomon was overwhelmed quickly by the combined strength of the two forces. Cornered and outgunned, Blossomon cried out and charged past both of the hulking Digimon.

"Look out!" Agunimon jumped in front of Mikey and Takato and guarded himself. But Blossomon wasn't charging at them.

"Spiral Flower!" He fired his black flowers at the wall, slashing it up further before leaping and crashing through it.

"Not so fast!" Shoutmon X4 shouted, chasing after it and taking out the rest of the wall in the process.

"Well, at least I can fight out there," Agunimon said. He was about to follow Growlmon out when he heard the roar of fire outside.

"That's... not a good sound," Takato moaned.

The three raced outside to find that the gasoline-soaked wood Blossomon had crashed through had landed on the brush fire outside, instantly catching and turning into a massive blaze. Blossomon stood in front of it. He faced his opponents, picking up loose boards and adding it to the inferno behind him, laughing the whole time.

Agunimon noticed Digmon out of the corner of his eye, struggling to get Cody out of the flames. He raced over, leaving Takato and Mikey to continue dealing with Blossomon.

"You okay?"

Cody coughed. "Looks like we finished the firebreak just in time. Where's Yolei?"

They heard her scream from inside the fire. Agunimon leaped in after it. Thankfully, his ability to manipulate fire was an asset now, and he was able to massage the flames around him to forge a path to Yolei. She was lying on the ground gasping for air, her glasses fogged up with smoke. Agunimon grabbed her, picked a direction, buried his head and ran to safety.

He tripped over the trench Digmon had created as a firebreak. He pulled himself and Yolei to safety on the other side, but did not have the energy to get back up. Agunimon was fire-based, but not fireproof, and suffered many burns in the escape. He reverted back to Takuya.

Yolei alternated between gasping and coughing, face covered in ash save only for where tears had streamed down. Daring herself to see again, she pulled her glasses off and found herself in Takuya's arms. He was panting as well and did not let go of her.

"W... what just happened?" Yolei said. Her voice cracked.

Takuya only forced a grin. "Nothing. Just saved your life."

Yolei looked back and made out the vague shape of a raging, but controlled, fire. She turned back and angrily propped her head against Takuya's chest. "Dammit," she muttered.

* * *

"Burning Star Slasher!" A wave of energy from Shoutmon X4's sword knocked Blossomon to the brink of the fire. Growlmon closed off any other escape routes.

"Why did you do all this?" Shoutmon X4 asked. "What purpose is there in this much destruction? Tell us now!"

Blossomon only laughed. "You think I did this alone?! How rich!"

"Who were you working with?!"

Blossomon continued to laugh as it backed up all the way into the fire.

"Wait!"

It laughed as flames caught his vines. His cackling didn't stop until he was fully incinerated.

"Well, that was ominous," Takato said. Growlmon reverted back to Guilmon and Shoutmon's companions returned to Mikey's Fusion Loader.

"So what now?" Mikey asked.

Takato reached towards Pabumon, but thought twice about petting it again. "Now we get this guy to safety and see if he can help us find some answers."

Takuya joined them, still helping Yolei walk. Cody and Armadillomon were behind them.

"Fire's nasty, but it doesn't seem to be spreading," Takuya said.

"We need to stick around to make sure it stays that way," Cody added.

"Do we want to check out the other buildings?" asked Mikey.

Before Takuya could answer, Halsemon and Lobomon finally returned. As soon as they landed, Lobomon looked at the suddenly huge blaze, then at his pails of water.

"This won't be nearly enough," he muttered.

Takuya shook his head and transferred Yolei to Mikey. "Looks like we'll have plenty of time for that." He turned to Cody. "Cody, might want to report back. We're gonna be here for a while."

While Takuya and Cody walked off to update Command, Mikey tried not to let Yolei see his blush. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah." Her cheeks were just as red.

"I take it you're cool with Takuya again?"

She sneered, glancing at Takuya. "It's not fair how easy it is to get out of arguments when you can turn into a Digimon."

"Really?" Takato turned to Guilmon. "I'll have to try that sometime."

* * *

Tommy Himi didn't mind this particular chore. There was a particular berry that grew in the bushes near the river and Mimi had sent him to retrieve some. He was the one who had discovered how much they added to one of her sauce recipes. While Mimi was by far the more skilled cook, he had a knack for coming up with the key ingredient that could put a dish over the top. He was Mimi's secret weapon and was more than happy to serve as such.

Palmon scanned the area and pointed to a bush under a low-hanging tree. "Why don't you get that one under that tree? I'll get this one here." Palmon's presence was two-fold. One was that it was common policy to have a Digimon accompanying anybody outside the castle, and Tommy's spirits were stored in Takuya's D-Tector on some faraway mission. The second was that Palmon was the only one who knew which berries they were looking for and which similar-looking ones would induce severe vomiting for days.

Tommy had to crawl under the tree to get to the bush in question. It was farther out of the way than Palmon had suggested; he would have overlooked it completely. He started plucking the berries and dropping them into the basket, pausing when he heard a rustling on the other side. Tommy froze, not sure whether he should try to identify the source, remain silent, or fetch Palmon. He decided to sit tight and listen; if it was anything threatening it could very well overwhelm Palmon too.

"Probably just a Digimon," a male voice said. He spoke quietly, so Tommy had trouble identifying it.

"We really shouldn't come out here unprotected," an equally quiet female replied.

"I don't like to think we're unprotected. I'm here for you."

Whoever was out there, they were human and the context spelled rendezvous to Tommy. Tommy did what any fifteen-year-old boy would do in this situation- grin and eavesdrop.

"I know. I wish you could. I want to see him," the woman said.

"I still feel him. The whole thing felt like a dream, but... I felt like I had changed after waking up. I felt less alone."

Tommy heard a brief shuffle, then the woman said, "I felt the same way. The exact same way."

It wasn't quite silence that followed. There was breathing. A lot of breathing. And the occasional smack that Tommy could only visualize as two lips separating. These sounds replaced any conversation.

Realizing that this was going to be the rest of the show, Tommy tried to go back to picking berries. Whatever was going on, it wasn't his business and he certainly didn't want to be discovered. Especially since he was beginning to suspect whose voices he was hearing. But it didn't stop, and Tommy's adolescent curiosity won out. He needed visual.

First he tried to peek through the bush, but that didn't provide a useful angle. He spotted a bit of light poking through between the bush and the tree, but he couldn't wedge himself in front of it to get a proper view. Finally, he took a deep breath and carefully pulled the bush aside, just enough to get a good look at the amorous couple.

He certainly got that. He saw Jeri, topless at the very least, with a man that certainly was not Takato kissing her neck, with a hand draped around her waist. She was staring back at Tommy in utter horror. Tommy quickly ducked back behind the bush, grabbed his basket and crawled back to Palmon. The brief glance had also been enough for him to confirm his suspicion about the identity of the man.

This was how Tommy became the first to learn the identity of Koichi's new girlfriend.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 4: "Bed of Nails"**  
When the patrol team returns, Marcus and Kazu hatch a plan to hook Yoshi up with one of the new arrivals. Mikey gathers support for a new team. Tommy accidentally spills his secret to Mimi and Sora. Henry is distracted after a new development affects him personally, frustrating his girlfriend Yolei.

" _She's just frustrated because she's the only girl here who can't get laid."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
The river is not as mysterious as it seems; the allusion should be pretty obvious if you think about it. It's a way to make sure characters are provided for. If they weren't, that would tend to make up the bulk of the drama and we're not going for a survival story here.

While the audio dramas probably aren't canon, especially as far as the dub goes, one of them introduces the concept of swapping digieggs to create alternate Armor evolutions. It's pretty well accepted that the egg-wielding digidestined can do this, they just never do in season two.

So yes, Tommy's role in the castle is themed around one mostly pointless Frontier episode where he accidentally comes up with a perfect burger sauce. As one of the few things he excelled at in the series, let's just say it inspired him to keep experimenting in the kitchen.

The policy of never leaving home without a Digimon may sound familiar to readers of Level 1. It's not so much an homage (although there may be a couple references down the road). It was common sense in Level 1 and it's common sense here. You'll learn Marcus's opinion of this policy in a future episode.

As hinted in their conversation, Koichi and Jeri are not as arbitrary as it seems. While Tommy's discovery will have immediate ramifications, the reasoning behind their relationship will be explored in more depth in the future.

_8SoL0yMGik  
B007XEFLIC


	5. 04- Bed of Nails

**Neverworld**

 _Bed of nails- every point is painful._  
 _Bed of nails- a thousand points of spite._  
 _Bed of nails- you know the weak it ain't for._  
 _It hurts me just right._  
 _\- Rockapella, "Bed of Nails"_

 **Episode 4**

Marcus Damon stared over the edge of the crevice. He wasn't sure if they were vines, arms or tentacles completely filling the dark void, only that they were alive and that he had to get to the bottom of it.

"What are we thinking, Boss?" Agumon said, standing behind him.

Rika scoffed. "That implies that he's thinking at all." She turned to Marcus. "You're not really considering jumping in, are you?"

"Of course!" he replied, grinning widely. "That crown is down there and those Prairiemon asked us to get it for them."

"We _think_ it's down there," Henry said. "We don't know for sure."

"We don't know anything about what's down there," Yoshi observed. "We don't know how deep it is. We don't know what kind of monsters are in there. Should we really be killing ourselves over a shiny hat?"

Marcus was livid. "Hey! That's a ceremonial heirloom! Their entire society relies on it!"

"Then they can make a new one. We can help them with that."

"We've never quit on a mission and I'm not quitting on this one! I don't care if Agumon and I have to go alone."

This was the cue for Yoshi and Henry to throw up their hands and walk away. Rika, as always, remained. "Yeah, and we all know what happens next."

"We beat up the thieves and get the crown back?"

"No, Gogglehead, you get into trouble and we have to put ourselves in danger to save you."

He clutched the goggles around his neck, a service decoration Davis and Takato had bestowed on him a year ago. "I'm not asking you to watch my back. We'll handle this."

"You'll be crying for help in two minutes."

As the arguing continued, Yoshi and Henry retreated away from the edge and joined Kazu and the rest of their Digimon, all seated around a campfire. Kazu was smiling. "So Yoshi, what'll happen first? Those two kill each other or have crazy awesome sex?"

Yoshi looked back at them, still going at it. "I don't think either one is likely, but if I had to put money on it, I'll bet on murder."

"Deep down, I'm sure they care about each other," Renamon said.

"Well, sure." Yoshi shrugged and mumbled, "I just don't think they're that into sex."

Kazu sat up and pointed at Yoshi. "I detect some resentment in there."

She turned away, trying to conceal a blush. Lalamon blurted, "Oh, she's just frustrated because she's the only girl here who can't get laid."

Cheeks fully red, Yoshi shouted, "I said that in private!"

"Why, what's the problem?" Kazu asked. With a grin, he added, "Might be something we can help with."

She held up a hand. "The problem is I have standards. Namely that I'm not sleeping with anyone whose age starts with a one. Ew."

"That could be an issue then," Henry said.

"It's not fair. I'm 24. These should be the golden years. You're all supposed to be too young and irresponsible for all that."

The argument between Marcus and Rika ended as it always did, with Marcus giving a rousing shout of "It's fighting time!" and plunging into danger with Agumon.

Rika stormed back to the campfire. "What a doof," she muttered.

"You should give him more credit," said Yoshi, trying to show poise and maturity in spite of the prior conversation. "Give him five minutes at least."

"I am timing this," Henry said.

Smirking at Henry, Rika asked, "So what were you all talking about? I heard shouting."

"Yoshi's having hot flashes," Terriermon said.

Yoshi glared at Terriermon. "God, you're worse than Lalamon."

Rika grunted. "Can we just go home already?"

Henry pointed at Yoshi. "Hey, a new group arrived. Maybe they'll be your age."

"I sure hope so," Yoshi said. "When are we going back? Tomorrow?"

"Today, actually. Tai wanted us back as soon as we finish this Prairiemon business. Not sure why the schedule changed."

"Why are you complaining?" Kazu asked. "You've got a girl back home."

Henry's eyebrows flared. "So does Rika."

"Rika has a girl?!" Kazu shrugged. "Well, I just lost a bet."

"She has a boy..." Henry looked at Rika, who was glaring back. "...boyfriend? What are you two?"

"We're none of your business," Rika answered.

They heard Marcus scream from below the cliff. None of them turned around. "Renamon," Rika said. Renamon vanished.

Henry checked his D-Power. "Four and a half."

Yoshi turned to Rika. "See?"

"So should I try fixing you up with one of the new kids?" Kazu asked Yoshi.

"You?" Yoshi sneered at him. "No. If I was that desperate, I'd ask somebody who might actually succeed."

Renamon popped over the cliff, carrying Marcus, who carried Agumon. Marcus had cuts on his sleeves, one shoe missing, and blood on his cheek.

He also wore a crown.

* * *

Mikey Kudo finally had a plan. It had been two days since the Blossomon incident and answers were still scarce. Pabumon was cooperative, but saw little and as a baby had very limited language skills. The interrogation involved Thomas asking a question, Pabumon mumbling an answer, MarineAngemon attempting to translate and Kenta translating for him. It was taking forever.

In the meantime, Mikey had gathered Christopher and Nene in the library for an emergency Fusion Fighters team meeting. There, he announced, "I figured out something we can do."

"Let me guess, it involves saving the day and not turning our back on somebody," Christopher replied.

"Nope! Well... actually yes. Once they learn more about the attack, we should volunteer to find and take care of the culprits!"

"Don't they have a team for that already?"

"Well, they've got a team that does a regular patrol around the world and a team that responds to emergencies. We can be the investigation team!"

Nene raised an eyebrow. "You're using my Monitamon as a selling point, aren't you?"

"Yeah... and can you still do that thing where you make Digimon disguises for us?"

She narrowed her eyes. "You're very lucky I'm getting bored here."

"Yeah, I guess I'm in," Christopher added.

"And so am I!" Suzie added. She was suddenly sitting at the table with them, grinning from ear to ear.

"Where did you come from?"

"I'm trying to avoid the kitchen. We found out the patrol team's coming back a day early and they're in a total panic. It's all hands on deck in there... so I'm taking as long as possible with the morning cleaning."

"They need help?" Mikey stood up. Christopher and Nene pulled him back down.

"But about your proposal..." Suzie leaned in, chin on her hands. "You need five people. Big Tommy says it's the ideal number for a team."

"Big Tommy?"

"Thomas upstairs. I have to call him that so I can call Tommy in the kitchen Little Tommy. He hates it when I call him Little Tommy."

"So in other words you want to fill out our numbers?" Christopher asked.

"Most of my work involves cleaning. I want to get out there and actually be useful. Lopmon feels the same way."

Nene smiled. "If Cutemon stays home, Lopmon could keep Dorulumon company. I like this idea."

Mikey scratched his chin. "Well, I'll see if they'll be okay with just us three, but if they want more I guess we have no choice. I'm sure Angie and Jeremy aren't interested."

"Excellent! Happy to help!" Suzie jumped off her chair, walked over to a vacuum across the room and wheeled it in the opposite direction of the kitchen.

"I like her," Nene said. "Feels like she could be the little sister I never had."

"Speaking of which..." Christopher turned to Mikey. "...Ewan?"

Grimacing, Mikey said, "The Hunt was one thing but I don't know if he'd want to sign up for something where he might end up fighting a lot."

"You can leave Ewan to me," said Nene. "I'll make sure he's willing to do anything for us." Her face formed a fiendish smile and she looked in the same direction as the kitchen.

* * *

Tommy Himi was very happy for the sudden chaos. After seeing what he had, he was grateful for anything that took his mind off it. He couldn't tell anybody; not only was Koichi one of his longest friends, the kitchen staff answered to Jeri as a branch of the hospitality department.

Of course, they all answered to Izzy, and most of the conversation in the kitchen involved Mimi cursing his name. "Does he have any idea how much we have to plan this in advance? Those guys have been gone for how many weeks and we were all ready to give them a fantastic meal tomorrow. If they want to change it to today, the least that little nerd could have done is warn me!"

"I think this was a sudden decision," Tommy said. "Something to do with that attack maybe."

"Then he should keep me in the loop! I thought we were such good friends!" Mimi huffed. "No more! We're done!"

"Does that mean you'll stop trying to seduce him?"

"Oh, I haven't done that in almost a year. Get back to work."

"Do you really think we can get all this done?" he asked as he resumed chopping vegetables.

Mimi shook her head. "No, I don't. I told Sora and Suzie to help us as soon as they can. Jeri said she'd stop by too."

Tommy damn near chopped his thumb off. "J... Jeri?"

"Bless her. So much to do on her end and she still wants to help us."

"Yeah, uh... she's a saint," he said hesitantly.

Mimi calmly stopped her mixing, set down her bowl, and walked up to Tommy. "Tommy dear?" She smiled, resting her hands on Tommy's shoulder. His hands shook, forcing him to put down his knife. "Is there something going on with Jeri that Mimi needs to know about?"

He made the mistake of looking at her. There was no lying to a face like hers. "Jeri's cheating on Takato," he blurted.

She squealed. "Are you serious?!"

He nodded nervously. "I saw her and, uh, somebody when you sent me to get those berries." He sighed, relieved to at least keep Koichi's identity secret.

"Oh. My. God." Mimi returned to her station. "That's right, Takato had that mission that day."

She hushed up as she heard the door open. Thankfully, it was Sora. "Okay, I'm here, what do you need me to do?"

"Oh, perfect timing! Let's see, what are you better at?"

Sora tied an apron on. "Probably baking."

"I know you make good cookies." Mimi stopped when she felt Sora staring at her. She was frowning. Mimi cleared her throat. "Sorry. Wasn't thinking. Uh, think you can do a pie?"

"Sure," Sora replied, retrieving the first round of ingredients.

The awkward silence between them continued longer than Mimi was comfortable with. Finally, she snapped. "So you'll never guess what Tommy just found out." Before Sora actually had a chance to guess, Mimi said, "Jeri's having an affair."

Sora almost dropped a bag of flour. "What?"

"I know, right?" Mimi was suddenly giddy. "Tommy saw her fooling around with someone out in the woods while Takato was out. This is amazing!"

"How is this amazing?" Sora furrowed her eyebrows at Mimi. "Do we... do we not like Jeri?"

"Oh, we love Jeri! But this is just too good."

"Good? This is terrible... poor Takato. Why are you excited about this?"

"Oh, relax. It's just something to talk about. Makes the day go faster, you know?"

"With all this work to do, is the day going faster a good thing?" Tommy said.

Sora shook her head. "I mean, would you be this happy if you found out I'd cheated on Matt?"

"Moreso!" Mimi chirped.

"What if he'd cheated on me?"

"Oh, then I'd kill him." Mimi felt that stare again and dropped her smile. Sheepish, she stuck out her tongue and said, "Sorry... again."

"It's just..." Sora sighed. "Everybody's always bouncing in and out of relationships. I just wanted to see one actually last."

That silenced Mimi. It didn't come up again, especially since Jeri herself was the next one in. "I'll warn you now I'm not a great cook, but I'll help wherever you need me." As she tied an apron on, she glanced warily at Tommy. He was doing his best to avoid eye contact.

Mimi nodded. "Okay, why don't you start seasoning the-"

"Ow!" Tommy exclaimed. He clutched his hand. "Whoops, just cut myself. Better go see Joe."

"Uh oh," Sora said as Tommy quickly ran out. "Jeri, can you see if there's any blood on the veggies?"

Jeri stared at the door before peering at Tommy's board. It was totally clean. Without a word, she followed Tommy out.

* * *

Imperialdramon wasn't always sent to pick up the patrol team, but their crown retrieval operation took them far enough away that flying back themselves was impractical. It did make for an impressive entrance when they landed in the courtyard, which was appropriate since it was the first time the Fusion Fighters were meeting them.

"Nice to meet you. Welcome aboard," Marcus told Mikey in the middle of a firm handshake.

"Thanks. I've heard good things about you," Mikey replied.

Actually, he had _seen_ good things about Marcus. In fact, once Marcus had moved on to introducing himself to Nene and Angie, Ewan whispered, "We definitely met him."

"Yep," said Mikey. That was now five he recognized.

Down the line, Nene smiled at Marcus. "It's nice to finally meet you in person."

Marcus grinned. "Have they told you how I've never lost a fight since coming here?"

Her face lit up. "They have!" As Marcus moved on, Nene and Angie turned to each other, stifling giggles.

The new arrivals weren't the only ones greeting the patrol team. Takato, Suzie, Ryo and Kenta were all on hand to welcome Henry, Rika, Kazu and their Digimon back. Suzie jumped into Henry's arms.

Takato welcomed Rika back with a hug. "So how many times did Renamon have to save Marcus this time?"

"Counting this morning- five," Renamon replied.

"That's not too bad." He pulled away and Rika accepted awkward hugs from Ryo and Kenta.

"Anything come up on your end?" Henry asked.

"Had to respond to a nasty attack a couple days ago. Mikey even helped with that one."

Kazu eyed the row of new kids, still introducing themselves to Marcus and Yoshi. "How are they shaping up?"

"Well, Mikey's definitely legit."

"Good to hear." Kazu smiled as he watched Lalamon fly a little too close to Mikey's face.

"And Angie's been a great help in the habitat," Kenta added.

Ken approached them, somehow carrying six bags around his arms, shoulders and neck with Wormmon riding on his shoulder. He dropped them in front of the tamers. "Aw, you didn't have to do that for us, Kenny," Kazu said.

"I insist." Ken rubbed his open shoulder, at least until Rika took over. He blushed. "Oh... thanks."

"Ew, PDA," Ryo said mockingly.

Rika was stone-faced, ignoring Ryo. "If Wormmon moves, I can do the other one."

"I'd rather stay here," Wormmon replied, glaring at her. "Veemon and I had to carry you _and_ your bags." Rika chuckled politely.

With a half-smile, Takato shook his head. "Still not sure how this happened..."

While everybody marveled at whatever Ken and Rika were, Suzie grabbed Henry's bags. "I'll take these back to the room, Henry!"

Henry held out a hand. "But how would you-"

"Don't worry! I'll take care of it!" She darted off before Henry could object.

"So where's Jeri?" Rika asked.

"She's helping in the kitchen," Takato said. "They thought you were coming tomorrow so they're scrambling to get your dinner ready tonight."

"Jeez, they didn't have to do that. We could have waited."

Takato stared at the entrance to the hall. "Come to think of it, that probably explains why Suzie bolted."

"Henry!" Yolei's cry offered just enough warning for him to turn and catch her as she embraced him, adding in a deep, open kiss.

Ryo smirked. "Now that's PDA." He turned to Rika and Ken. "Your turn!" Rika stopped rubbing Ken's shoulder and folded her arms.

When she finally freed her mouth, Yolei said, "This was harder than I thought."

Henry smiled, still holding her. "Glad to see you too."

She pulled him away from the others. "They just got lunch out. Wanna sit down and catch up? I found this great book that has this amazing project..."

The other tamers and Ken watched them the whole way. Rika shook her head. "Really, you and her? And back home?"

"Things were... different then," Ken said.

As they continued to talk, Kazu snuck away from the pack. He intercepted Yoshi as she was heading back in. "So... did you meet the new kids?" he asked, ready for mischief.

Yoshi sighed. "Yeah." She shrugged. "Maybe. A couple of them could pass for-"

"Perfect! I already worked it out with Marcus. Leave everything to us!"

"Hold on, what?!" Before she could get any answers, Kazu had already run off. Yoshi groaned and clutched her forehead, muttering, "This is the worst..."

* * *

Joe Kido didn't give Tommy a clean bill of health so much as threw him out of his office. He was suspicious that Tommy was so quick to visit in the first place. It didn't take long to determine that Tommy wasn't actually hurt at all.

"Maybe it's one of those cuts that goes through the skin without bleeding," Tommy suggested as Joe pushed him out the door.

"Tommy, first you were trying to not be a crybaby when you nearly burned your hand off last month. Now you're just being paranoid. Can't you find a happy medium?"

"Look who's talking," Gomamon said.

"Why are you even here?!"

"Can we do an MRI just to be sure?" Tommy asked the door that had just slammed in his face. "I'm not satisfied with my care!" Finally he sighed and walked out of the tower.

Jeri was on the bridge waiting for him, head lowered. "I suppose we should talk, huh?"

Tommy frowned. "Sure we can't just avoid each other for a year or so?"

She shook her head. "So how much did you actually see?"

"Enough." He joined her against the railing.

"You didn't tell anybody, did you?"

Tommy turned away. "Um... well..." He sighed and started rambling, "See the funny thing about the crests is that they not only apply to whoever has them, they also affect the people they interact with. So not only is Mimi more sincere..."

"You told Mimi?!" Jeri cried, spinning around and facing him.

He bowed deeply. "Please don't fire me!"

Jeri stared at him as he kept his head down, waiting until she cleared him. However bad the situation was, she knew she had no reason to take it out on him. She returned to the railing and mumbled, "This is such a mess."

Tommy picked his head up and saw her leaning over the railing, staring down. "Well, is there anything I can do to help?" She turned his way. "I mean I really don't want this to get out either. Koichi's one of my best friends. And it sounded like you two were pretty serious."

"It is. I feel like..." She stopped and shook her head. "Never mind."

He put his hands on the railing. "In a way, I'm sort of happy for you two."

She forced a smile. "Thanks, but I don't think everyone else would be so understanding."

"I'll talk to Mimi. Trust me, she can keep a secret if she wants."

"I hope so. Promise you won't tell anybody else?"

"Promise." He looked away. "So uh... where does this leave Takato?"

Jeri heaved a sigh. "I don't know. I can't stand the thought of hurting him."

"Well, if you need someone to talk to..." Tommy thought about it for a moment. "...I wouldn't know what to say. Probably better off talking to Mimi."

A slight chuckle escaped her mouth. "Thank you. We probably should get back to the kitchen."

They walked back into the main building. "And here I was afraid you were going to tell everyone or blackmail me or something," she said.

"Aw, I wouldn't do that," Tommy replied. "I already got all the reward I need." He smiled. "I got to see you naked."

* * *

Nene Amano hoped her plan had worked, especially since Mikey had already made his formal proposal to Tai and Thomas and they did insist on five names. A few early birds had already claimed seats in the hall, waiting for the big dinner that would be arriving any moment. After a few days of casual dinner service, she liked the idea of seeing the room filled with the entire populace. Others must have felt the same way, as it was a tradition any time the patrol team returned.

This wasn't why she was early. The reason was to watch the carts of food being wheeled in. Ewan was part of the parade, doing his best to hide his disdain for the job. She approached him as he parked his cart, a big smile on her face.

He frowned. "You had to tell Mimi I can cook, didn't you?"

"Of course." She wagged a finger at him. "They needed help. We're Fusion Fighters; we can't turn our backs on them."

He glared at her. "This isn't a permanent arrangement, is it?"

"I thought you liked to cook. Still, Mikey was submitting a proposal to give us something to do. In case you're interested in taking part."

Ewan was about to ask for details when Mimi wheeled in her cart, then threw her arms around him. "Nene! Thank you so much for letting us borrow your brother!" She pinched his cheek. "You're incredible! I'm taking you for my wife!"

Mimi released him and skipped back to the kitchen. Ewan shuddered. "Okay, Sis, whatever you're doing, I'm in."

Nene nodded in satisfaction. "Excellent! You seem busy so I'll tell you all about it later." Ewan sighed and walked back to the kitchen. Nene sighed as well, but in contentment. "I've still got it," she said to herself. For all her talk about being Fusion Fighters, deep down a part of her would always remain Midnight.

* * *

Takato Matsuki was one of the first to claim a table, but his excitement over dinner had nothing to do with the food. It was his company. He had to sit back and appreciate the sight. He had Jeri. Henry had Yolei. Rika, apparently, had Ken.

As they ate, Takato had to share. "Can I just say how awesome it is that we all have dates? It's almost like we're grown ups or something."

"Well, technically we are." Henry looked at Yolei and smiled. "But I guess I see what you mean."

"I'm very happy for all of you," Jeri said, a smile painted on her face.

"I don't see what the big deal is," Rika muttered. "Is it that shocking that I'm taking an interest in another human being?"

"Yes," Takato and Henry answered in unison.

"To be honest, I don't know if we're comfortable calling each other boyfriend and girlfriend yet," Ken said.

Rika lifted her head up. "Unless Ryo's around, in which case we are madly in love with each other."

"Now it comes out," Henry said. "I figured that had something to do with it."

"I-" Rika tossed a nervous look at Ken. "That's not what I'm saying. It's just nice to have him leave me alone for once. I mean, Marcus bugs me to hell too, but at least he's not so... flirty about it." She shuddered.

Yolei smiled. "Guess that makes Ken the perfect choice, huh?"

"Hey, that's not why I..." She looked at Ken, stopping herself before she accidentally said something affectionate. He merely chuckled. Rika waved a dismissive hand at Yolei. "No, that whole thing is just a bonus."

Ken turned to Yolei. "Actually, Rika is more inclined to believe Ryo."

Rika began to explain, but Takato got in first. "Sorry, but it is weird that you're positive you've teamed up with him before and he doesn't know anything about it. It doesn't make any sense."

Ken shook his head. "No it doesn't."

"You know, Mikey..." Yolei blurted, then stopped. After thinking about it, she shook her head. "Never mind. I'm sure it was nothing."

They turned their attention to Tai, who had stepped up to the podium. "Well, first off, big thanks to Mimi and her entire team for getting all of this ready a day early. They really stepped up today." He paused to let a round of applause ride through. "Koichi also had some entertainment planned for all of us, but that will still have to wait until tomorrow. And of course we welcome back Marcus's patrol team, and we're happy that they all returned safely.

"Now, most of you have heard by now the reason they were brought back a day early. Two days ago, someone launched a terrible attack, destroying a village and deleting countless innocent Digimon. Takuya's team was able to rescue a survivor, who is safe at the habitat. We're still trying to get a full account of what happened, but I'm happy to say we will be able to respond immediately the moment we learn anything, without sacrificing any of our current operations."

Henry leaned over to Takato. "Have you heard anything about this?" Takato shook his head.

Tai continued, "We will be creating a third field team. In addition to some specialized investigation work similar to what Keenan has been doing, they will also be responsible for tracking down and stopping anyone who would commit this kind of atrocity." Tai frowned at Thomas behind him; from the tone and language, it was evident who had actually written this speech.

"Mikey Kudo has volunteered to head this team." Tai found Mikey in the crowd and gestured towards him. "As is the norm, this team will consist of five members. Joining Mikey will be Christopher Aonuma, Nene Amano, Ewan Amano and Suzie Wong."

It almost missed Henry entirely as it followed a line of names that he hadn't quite matched faces to. Only the murmur of whispers around the room confirmed that he had heard correctly and that his baby sister was heading to the front lines. "Whoa, hold on, Suzie?" he mumbled.

He was helpless to stare back at Tai as he concluded. "We pray for their safety and wish them the best of luck in all future tasks. Thank you."

Tai rejoined the five officers at their table and the conversations around the room continued. Henry had no idea if they were talking about the announcement or just carrying on with whatever they were discussing before. He tried to find his sister. Along the way, he found Mikey's group. With the exception of Angie, they were smiling and surely excited for what was in store for them. Eventually, he found Suzie, beaming and not even minding Tommy playfully trying to mess up her hair.

Yolei and Ken eased Henry back into his chair. "Are you okay?" asked Ken.

Henry sighed. "Yeah," he lied. He was barely comfortable being on the patrol team, satisfied with his work only because it prevented fights as much as it resolved them. Suzie's team was far different, far more dangerous, and she had far less of an idea what she had signed up for. Yolei rubbed his back, but it was going to take far more than that to ease his concerns.

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda loved being back at the castle for one reason above any other: the bath was fantastic. One soak in it made her forget all of her problems, and she was already looking forward to the next day's appointment. For once, she didn't even mind all the annoying teenagers floating through the hallways.

One of them even stopped to talk to her. "Hey, Yoshi!" said Takuya. "Just got the flier! What a great idea! Thanks for doing this!"

She forced a smile and nodded as he walked by. Then she scowled. She had no idea what he was talking about. All she knew was that she had to find and possibly kill Kazu.

Along the way back to Leo Tower, one of the new kids also stopped Yoshi and raved about her amazing plans. Yoshi handled it politely, but killing Kazu was not only becoming more certain, she may very well activate Burst Mode in the process.

She didn't find Kazu, but she did find Marcus. He had a small stack of fliers that he tucked under his shirt the moment he saw Yoshi. In an instant, she was on him and snatched one away.

"Hey, we were gonna surprise you!" he cried as she read it.

Her eyes bulged as he saw a picture of her head superimposed over a swimsuit model. Above time and place information, a large caption read "YOSHI'S SEXY BEACH PARTY!"

She crumpled it up and turned around, her hand still balled in a fist. "I'm sure you have a great explanation for this."

Marcus rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I mean Takato's okay with Photoshop, but we could have found a better bikini girl. Doesn't look like you at all. Her complexion's better and her boobs are too big."

Yoshi threw the flier in his face. "Are you seriously telling people I'm hosting a beach party?!"

"Yeah! Doesn't it sound like fun? We'll get the new kids there, everybody's half-naked and since they think you're hosting you're totally the star! Just take your pick and you'll be all set!"

"I'm not...!" She was so angry she couldn't figure out what she wasn't going to do. Go to a party? Have fun? Check out a bunch of guys with their shirts off? Yoshi growled at him and stormed back to her room in Leo Tower. The only two things that frustrated her more than Marcus and Kazu springing this was the fact that she had no good reason to say no and that there was a chance that it would work.

* * *

Henry Wong wasn't feeling much better that night. He didn't track down Tai; everyone at the table suggested he sleep on it so he wouldn't be too angry. He wasn't sure if he actually would sleep, not with this hanging over him. He had seen enough in the field and had heard enough about the recent attack that the thought of Suzie pursuing those villains wasn't leaving his head anytime soon.

One more factor was bound to cut into his sleep, but at least Yolei was trying to help. She held him as the elevator reached the fifth floor and the doors opened. "We can deal with it tomorrow." She squeezed him tighter. "I know something that can take your mind off all this."

He forced a smile and mumbled, "Yeah..." He wasn't sure if even that would help, but he was definitely eager to give it a try. As they reached his room, Henry looked at the closed door on the other side of the hallway. He was going to have to talk to Suzie as well. Again- the next morning. He opened his door and he and Yolei stepped inside.

"Hi, Henry!" Suzie was standing in the middle of the room, wearing pajamas. Henry's bags were on his bed. Suzie's blankets and pillows were on the other one.

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, and Yolei! Did you get your towers mixed up? You're in the other one!"

Yolei wanted to respond, but backed away before Suzie thought any differently. Henry, however, was still free to enter and cry, "What are you doing here? Go back to your room!"

"This is my room! They needed to give my old room to Nene and Angie."

"Well, they could have run that by me!"

Suzie frowned. "D... don't you want to room with me?"

"I..." Henry froze up. "I didn't mean it like that. I just..." He grumbled to himself. "Excuse me."

He walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Then he balled his hands into fists and tried not to slam them into anything.

Yolei took them. "Seriously? They just threw her in there without telling you?"

"I don't know if sleeping on this is going to help," Henry muttered. "Does it ever occur to them that I'd like to be in on any decisions involving Suzie? Or my own room?"

"Okay, okay." She rubbed his shoulders. "It's not a big deal. We can always go back to my room."

He shook his head. "I'm sorry. I just... can't right now. I'm exhausted." He sighed. "I should probably talk this over with Suzie too."

"But..." Yolei considered pleading, but she knew it wouldn't help. She sucked it up and pulled him into a hug. It was the easiest way to make sure he didn't see the frustration on her face. "All right. Take care. We can straighten it out in the morning."

He nodded. "Thanks." They kissed, and he returned to his room. And Yolei was alone again.

This was the great reward of having a steady boyfriend. Weeks of nothing followed by another night alone. She called for the elevator again, dreading the long trek back to Ophani Tower. The whole time, all she could think of was whether this was worth it.

The elevator arrived and Angie stepped out, shooting Yolei a mean look. Yolei boarded the elevator, watching Angie enter her room opposite the new Wong residence. Angie glared at Yolei again as the doors closed. Yolei had barely spoken to Angie all week and still somehow knew what it was about.

Mikey made all of this worse. Yolei was going to suck it up and go to bed alone, unsatisfied and miserable. She still liked Henry and was never going to break up with him over the crime of worrying about his sister. But knowing that Mikey was out there, amazing and interested and willing? She gave up having him by her side for this. What was this proving?

To make matters worse, on Yolei's slog through the main building, Mikey was still in the library, enjoying a nightcap with Marcus and some of the other guys. Whatever they were talking about, they were enjoying themselves greatly and surely had no need for her souring it up. She tried to walk by them without drawing their attention, but stole a glance at Mikey. He was fine. He wasn't losing any sleep over this. And in time, another girl would realize his charms and win him over. Mikey saw her, so she quickly looked away, lowered her head, and walked faster.

Only she forgot one thing about Mikey- the most important thing. He caught up to her in the main hall and grabbed her wrist. "What's wrong?"

Such a show of concern only made it worse. Her eyes suddenly welled up. "Don't worry about it," she said.

"I can't do that."

She spun around to face him, pulling her arm away. "Dammit, stop being so perfect! And the next time someone tells you to visit a girl's room in the middle of the night, at least have the guts to knock!"

Yolei left him there, sprinting back to her room so she could cry into her pillow and sleep by herself.

* * *

Tai Kamiya returned from lunch the next day in terrible shape. He dragged his feet out of the elevator, clutching his head after what had been a complete evisceration from Henry. Tai had very good points for most of what Henry had to say, but the tamer's tone of voice and serious concern for Suzie, something Tai obviously sympathized with, made it impossible for him to deliver them. Instead, he had to listen to it all, then pick himself up and return to his post.

As damning as throwing Suzie into active duty was, it was the room situation that caught Tai off guard. He had nothing for that because he had no part in it. And it was the one thing he was going to ask about.

"What the hell, Izzy? How did you arrange for Suzie to move into Henry's room without telling Henry?"

Izzy turned around, wide-eyed and struggling to come up with a response. "I, uh... er..."

Thomas turned around too. "We put Suzie on the new team and Henry's mad about _that_?"

"Oh, he's really upset about that too. This room thing just put him over the top," Tai said.

"I told Suzie to inform Kari that it was happening so she could get a message through," Izzy explained. This drew Kari's attention away from her screen.

"Izzy, you see Kari every day. Suzie's never up here. Why couldn't you have told her?" Tai slumped down in his chair. "Now because of all this, Henry hates me."

Thomas frowned. "In hindsight, we could have been more tactful in integrating this new team. Especially since we can't give them any work until we get more information out of the Pabumon. At the same time, I was under the impression that Suzie petitioned Mikey for this job. And she certainly suggested moving in with Henry."

Tai sighed. "You try explaining that to him."

Izzy bowed his head. "I'm sorry, Tai. I take full responsibility in not informing Henry of the move."

Kari walked over to him and put a hand on Izzy's shoulder. "No. I saw the new room assignments. I should have realized we needed to tell Henry. It's my fault."

Izzy set his hand on top of Kari's. With a pained expression, he said, "Don't blame yourself. I was supposed to tell you and I didn't."

While Kari returned to her station, Thomas said, "Still, as much as Henry protests, we should stand by our decisions on both counts. Suzie is very capable with a strong Digimon partner."

"But she really is young," Tai replied.

"She's 13. How old were you when you first went to the Digital World?"

Tai stared back. "Fair point."

Davis shook his head and turned to Thomas. "You're missing the point. How would you feel if your sis signed up for this?"

Thomas stared back. "Suzie is an experienced tamer with a partner that evolves into a Deva. Relena is still figuring out how to walk after fighting a terrible disease for years. That's not a good comparison."

With a sigh, Tai stood up and walked to the elevator. "I need to get some air. Cross your fingers that I don't run into Henry again."

* * *

Sora Takenouchi couldn't stop thinking about Takato and Jeri. As far as relationships went at the castle, change was the norm. While Mimi reveled in it and kept records to chart everybody's personal histories, Sora felt bad for every break up or meaningless fling. She wasn't trying to judge anybody else's choices. She just wanted somebody, anybody, else to choose the same way she once did. She also wanted somebody to prove that that choice could work here. She and Matt never had the chance to prove it themselves.

She leaned against the railing on the bridge outside Ophani Tower, trying to accept that Jeri could cheat on Takato. They were her only hope- a couple that had started dating long before arriving here, but staying together throughout. Ken and Yolei didn't make it a year. Even among couples that had found each other here, nobody lasted much longer.

"Oh... hey Sora." Tai's walk had taken him here. "Is that railing taken?" She mustered up a faint smile and shook her head. He didn't look much better than her.

"Rough day upstairs?" she asked.

"You have no idea." Tai put his elbows on the railing and sighed. "So what's going on in your world?"

She took a deep breath. "Do you think Matt and I would still be together if he was still here?"

Tai hesitated. It wasn't the question he had expected, nor the conversation he was hoping to have. He settled for a safe and totally unhelpful answer: "Yeah, of course."

"I want to think that. I just don't know any more. Nobody else seems to make it very long."

"Hey, I didn't play awkward third wheel all those years so you guys could break up eventually. You two thought you'd be together forever..."

"Everybody says that, Tai. Here it might have actually been forever. Makes losing him that much harder."

Tai slumped over onto the railing. "We all miss him. We miss both of them."

"I just wish we knew the truth. I know it sounds terrible, but even if we knew for sure they were dead it would be..." She turned to him. "At least we'd be able to move on."

Tai looked at her, their eyes meeting for just that quick moment. Hers with all of that sadness and his worn down from a day of criticism. This is when it always happened.

He stood up straight and backed away from the railing. "I should get going," he said hurriedly. "I'll talk to you later."

She frowned, but nodded sadly. Tai made it back to the door before turning around, saying, "But hey, don't worry about what you and Matt would have been. Look at Takato and Jeri; they're doing fine. If they can make it, you guys could have too."

He walked back inside. Sora slumped over even further, worse off than before.

"Stupid Tai," she muttered.

* * *

The conversation rattled Tai just as much. He certainly was in no hurry to return to his post. He passed the bath, which sounded like a good remedy. Unfortunately, the hour was for girls and it would be another forty minutes or so before switching, too long for him to wait. He walked up to the door to the changing room, thinking that if perhaps no one was using it...

The door opened suddenly and Yolei shrieked. "Jeez! You know it's a girl's hour, right?"

Tai was startled by her scream, but replied, "Yeah, I was hoping no one was in there so I could sneak in quick. It's been a bad day."

Yolei scoffed. "Yeah, well that makes two of us." She pointed inside. "And it's awfully hard for me to relax in there having to share with Angie."

She walked away, but Tai followed. "You're having problems with Angie?" Angie was the last of the new kids he was worried about.

"Sort of. Let's just say I'd be happier if she had a real reason to be mad at me."

"I'm confused."

Yolei sat down on a couch opposite the bath entrance and sighed. "She thinks I'm after Mikey. And I would love to be, and I think he feels the same way."

"Aren't you with Henry?"

"Yeah, technically."

Tai sat down next to her. "Hmm... does your bad day have to do with me then?"

She nodded. "Yeah, technically."

"Look, I'm sorry for-"

"You don't have to be sorry." Yolei turned to him. "You had nothing to do with the room thing and it sounds like Suzie wanted to be on the new team."

"I still approved it," Tai replied. "And I get it, he's worried about his little sister. You know I can relate to that."

She grunted. "I don't buy into that. Suzie will be fine. Sometimes you have to let them take care of themselves." Shaking her head, she added, "Did I ever tell you how mad Mantarou was when he found out I was a digidestined?"

"Mantarou?"

"My older brother."

"You have an older brother?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You and I don't really hang out, do we?" She shrugged. "Anyway, I'm just..." Her hands shook. "I mean, I really like him and I want this to work out, but after a couple weeks I just want to be with him and..."

"And he's too worried about Suzie to spend time with you."

Tears started to form as she nodded. "And with Mikey out there... I feel like I'm making a mistake. I feel like I'd be so much happier if..."

He patted her on the shoulder. "Well, if it doesn't work between you and Henry, Mikey will still be here."

"You don't know that. By then, he might realize how crazy Angie is about him or someone else will sweep him away. A guy like that doesn't stay available for long."

Yolei sighed. "On top of all that, I have to listen to Henry complain about you. I hate that."

Tai shook his head. "You don't have to fight for me. Not if it means you and-"

"It doesn't matter. You don't know half the things we talk about down here. You're a good leader, Tai. I've seen it plenty of times. I can't stand that there are people that don't like you. Some people don't like Kari! Can you believe that?"

He stared at the ground and took a deep breath. He didn't need to hear that, but he appreciated her honesty. "Thanks for your support."

She wiped her eyes and said, "So what about you? What happened with Sora now?"

Tai almost lost his balance and fell over. He looked and her and cried, "We were just talking about Henry screaming at me! What makes you think Sora has anything to do with this?"

Yolei merely raised an eyebrow at him. Tai sighed and coughed it up: "She was asking if I thought she and Matt would still be together if he were still here. What am I supposed to say? I don't know. I mean, I'd like to think-"

"Tai, have you ever thought about how lonely she has to feel sometimes? I can't make it three weeks without Henry. How many years has it been since you guys lost Matt? I don't know what's up with this 'still be together' talk, but I'm sure she could really use some company."

"Well..." Tai blushed. Then he looked away. "It doesn't feel right, you know? I mean, we have every reason to think Matt's still alive somehow. I couldn't do that."

She smirked. "I didn't mean it like that. Didn't you used to be her best friend? Maybe you should act like it. Go back to treating her like the Sora you remember and not some tragic war widow."

"That's the problem. The Sora I remember..." He looked down. "I'm afraid that I might say something out of line. I don't want things to be weird between us."

"They already are weird! Don't you get that? If you let it slip that you like her, what's going to happen? She kinda knows anyway."

Tai turned away. Yolei shook her head at him. "She needs you around. She needs a best friend, and she'd be lucky to have you." She shrugged. "Hell, I'd love a best friend like you."

He faced her again. Her eyes were still red, whatever pain she was in still present, and still partially his fault. Yet she was trying so hard to help him. He looked away again.

She put a hand on his arm. "Maybe you just need to stop agonizing over Sora and find someone yourself. I never understood how you could be such a brave leader and so helpless with girls. Show some courage. You'd be surprised."

Tai closed his eyes. He never realized he was that transparent about liking Sora, especially after all these years. Yolei was treating it like common knowledge, and not even all that problematic. He wanted to take her lessons to heart. He also wanted to pay her back for her support. Only one action popped into his mind. It was all he wanted and he took it without a second thought.

From his pocket, he set a key on the bench next to Yolei. Still not looking at her, he said, "Take it and go to my room. I'll be up there in ten minutes."

Her face flushed and she looked around frantically. "Wha... where the hell did this come from?!"

"You're frustrated. I'm frustrated." He shrugged. "We can be less frustrated together. And neither of us can afford it getting out." He finally turned to her and forced a smile. "Like you said- courage."

She felt her breathing become heavier. He wasn't sure if she was hyperventilating, preparing to slap him or about to forego the whole room thing and take him there. He saw tears beginning to form again, but she didn't turn away.

Finally, she blinked. "Make it five minutes," she said, taking the key and briskly walking away.

In those five minutes, he didn't move. He couldn't believe what he had just done, and that barring something unexpected it was going to work. He looked around, waiting for the unexpected. Nobody walked past. No alarms went off.

After five minutes he stood up and slowly walked to Wizard Keep and boarded the elevator. Nobody stopped him. He rode it up to his room with no interruption. He reached his door and knocked. It opened and he stepped through it. It closed behind him and Yolei was on the other side.

"You know, this is probably a bad idea," he said.

"This is a terrible idea," she replied.

She stepped forward, grabbed his tie, pulled him closer and kissed him.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 5: "Play Harder"**  
A breakthrough in the Pabumon interrogation sends Mikey and his team on their first mission. Koichi's entertainment plan backfires horribly, endangering Jeri, infuriating Takato and causing some to question whether he's right for the job. The Agumons conspire to prank Tai and Marcus.

" _You need to keep trying. We need you to keep trying."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
Every episode title is named after a song, the one quoted at the start of the episode. This one is a pretty transparent reference to another fanfic- Kit Spooner's fantastic (and tragically unfinished) "Bed of Nails," which centered around Yolei's romantic frustrations. While the title of that story was a reference to a line in U2's "With or Without You," most of the songs used in the story are from either lesser-known acts (to the point where I've met many of them personally) or lesser-known songs from popular bands. It'll add up to a pretty eclectic soundtrack in the end.

In probably the first undeniable voice actor joke (prior ones have been more subtle), Rika's "what a doof" line is a clear reference to Marcus's sister Kristy, who is also voiced by Melissa Fahn.

The allusions to Suzie and Tommy pestering each other was inspired by an anniversary image book that featured the characters from the first four seasons all intermingling.

In part two of "Nene Makes a Manga Reference," instead of trying to rescue her little brother, Nene is trying to rescue her little sister Kotone in the manga. Kotone bears a small resemblance to Suzie.

All I'll say about Tai and Yolei is that I wasn't kidding when I said this story had all the pairings. That and I always found it curious how little these two interact.

Publishing note- since new episodes of Fusion are airing again, I'm back to work on System Restore and unable to do as much work on the story as I'd like. I'll post the next two episodes over the next four weeks as usual, but then I'll need a break to get the backlog back up before posting the next six or seven.

AF-SkUHUbYs  
xxxxxxxxxxx


	6. 05- Play Harder

**Neverworld**

 _Somebody's gonna scream louder._  
 _And have a bigger hit charter._  
 _But that kid's gonna win the game anyway:_  
 _Nobody's gonna play harder._  
 _\- Mark Aaron James, "Play Harder"_

 **Episode 5**

Yolei Inoue was surprised by how little she regretted sleeping with Tai. She had done some pretty stupid things in her time in the Digital World, and this was usually the point where she realized it. She was in his bed, with his covers covering her naked body, staring at his bare chest as he wrapped his arms around her and flashed his reassuring smile. In spite of everything, none of the usual warning signals were going off in her head.

She was certainly desperate enough to resort to it, but she also usually had the sense not to. Otherwise she would have been the one visiting Mikey's room instead of dreaming about him calling. Tai's proposal completely caught her off guard. He had never been bold around women, and to the best of her knowledge his track record here reflected that. She had to admit his sudden bravery impressed her, as was his point that neither had anything to gain letting word of this get out. It didn't hurt that she had always found him fairly attractive.

Really, all she could do was giggle in excitement. "I can't believe that actually happened."

"I'm still waiting for the downside to show up," Tai said. "There has to be a downside, right?"

"Oh, definitely. There's no way we're getting away with this. It was too perfect." She looked up and kissed him.

"Well, I'm not telling anybody. Can you imagine how Kari would react?"

"Yeah, we're dead if anyone finds out." Yolei nuzzled her head in Tai's chest. "You know, if things don't end up working out with Henry..."

"Let's not talk about that right now. You should try to make it work with Henry."

"I know, I know... but that means supporting him and stuff. Even when he's mad at you."

"Or you could reason with him. Use that story about... uh, what was your brother's name again?"

Yolei laughed. "You really don't know anything about me! This is incredible!"

Tai blushed. Suddenly defensive, he asked. "Well... do you know if Henry has any other brothers or sisters besides Suzie?"

She poked his nose, grinning. "Rinchei and Jaarin." He frowned suddenly. Yolei brushed back his hair. More serious, she said, "Don't worry about it. This was just a one time thing. And you were right, it was exactly what we both needed."

"Yeah, but still..."

"You're fine. In fact..." She kissed him again. "How badly do you need to get back?"

Tai smiled. "Now we're just pushing our luck." He kissed her, and kept kissing her, pulling her in closer in anticipation of round two.

A knock at the door nearly made both of them scream. They separated and covered themselves, even though the door was locked. "Tai, are you in there?" The fact that it was Kari's voice didn't help.

Tai looked at Yolei nervously and called back, "Yeah?"

"Thomas asked me to find you."

"Just uh... I was just taking a nap."

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, just a bit tired."

"Can you head down to the habitat? Thomas says there was a breakthrough with Pabumon."

"Oh. Okay, tell him I'll be down in..." Tai looked at Yolei, who shrugged. "In twenty."

"Twenty minutes? Are you still having problems tying your tie, Tai?"

"Yeah, yeah, don't wait up."

The silence from the door cleared the way for Yolei to speak, although she kept her voice down in case Kari was stuck waiting for the elevator. "Well, that took a few years off my life."

"Guess I'll have to take a rain check on the encore," Tai said, sitting up.

"Well, with any luck I won't need this again."

"Oh. I suppose," Tai said sadly.

She sat up and rubbed his back. "Hopefully you won't either." She kissed him on the cheek and got up to dress. Tai watched her. He figured it would be a while before he got another opportunity.

* * *

Koichi Kimura had never been taken seriously for his role in the group. While many were responsible for fighting and defending the castle, and others had essential tasks like keeping everybody fed and making sure the place remained tidy, Koichi's job of planning events and entertainment seemed inconsequential by comparison. He tried to put something together once every few weeks to break up the monotony of life in a mostly peaceful Digital World. Generally he mimicked the human world calendar, acknowledging birthdays and celebrating holidays even though nobody aged and there were no seasons. Arrival anniversaries were always significant as they coincided with one team's victory back home. Koichi also tried to push annual sports and culture festivals in an effort to recreate the high school life that most of the residents were taken out of. Little was thought of them, and apparently nobody actually liked culture festivals.

In spite of this, Koichi put his all into these events. Even when they seemed silly or didn't quite come together the way he'd hoped, they were things people could put on a calendar. They offered something different, something to anticipate. Otherwise the routine would have driven everybody crazy. Izzy thankfully recognized this and gave Koichi free reign to do what it took to keep everybody upbeat.

He was trying something new with the evening's entertainment, so he was nervous as he supervised the preparations in the main hall. JP and Jeremy did most of the work.

"Hey, you know what would be easier?" JP told Jeremy. "I bet we could hook up Ballistamon as a speaker system. Wanna pull him out?"

Jeremy shook his head, straining as he tried to carry his speaker across the stage. "Can't. Had to give him back to Mikey."

"Don't you hate that? I hate having to bug Koji for my spirits."

"That looks like a good spot," Koichi said.

Jeremy was happy to drop the speaker in place, but said, "You can't be sure until sound check. We may want to tweak things a bit. When's he getting here?"

"In a couple hours. I'm glad they didn't want me to reschedule this like they did with the dinner."

"Why is this happening tonight?" JP asked. "Seems like a big show just to celebrate Marcus and them coming back. It's not that big a deal."

"Well, originally I suggested doing this to cap off Odaiba Day."

"Oh yeah, that's next week already, isn't it?"

Sighing, Koichi said, "Izzy said my idea didn't think about all the Digimon that sacrificed their lives for us."

JP narrowed an eye. "Wait, he said that to _you_?"

Koichi cracked a smile. "I think Zoe must have pointed that out to him because he tracked me down and apologized an hour later. Takuya thought it was hilarious."

JP and Koichi surveyed the stage as Jeremy continued to wire everything. "Looks like it's coming together though," JP said. "This should be fun."

"I hope so. Everyone wants me to step things up. I feel like this is where it starts."

"I bet we get a pretty good sound too. I don't know how you talked Jeri into approving all these new cables, but it gives us a lot more flexibility sound-wise."

Koichi looked away, uneasy. "Well, she wants to be entertained as much as the next person."

"You know, all these new cables don't do squat if we don't get them hooked up in time!" Jeremy shouted. "Gimme a hand here!"

Koichi quickly nodded and ordered JP back to work, taking a deep breath before resuming his own duties.

* * *

Thomas Norstein rarely frequented the habitat. As comfortable as he was with Digimon and as friendly as they were to him, he was still very human and felt like a stranger there. Plus he wore very nice shoes and feared stepping in anything. Even when he spent time with Gaomon, they met outside. This Pabumon interrogation had seen him spend more time there than he was comfortable with. He hoped it would be worth it.

His discussion with Kenta and MarineAngemon had drawn plenty of attention within the habitat. Gaomon had been a regular witness to the process and Angie wasn't going to miss any summary of their findings if it impacted Mikey's fate.

Tai rushed in and found them near the entrance. His hair was even more unruly than usual, his tie was more crooked than it had been earlier in the day and his slacks had a few extra wrinkles. Such things never escaped Thomas. "Where have you been?"

"I had to lay down for a bit. You know what kind of day I'm having." Tai took a couple breaths. "So what did we find out?"

"Pics," said MarineAngemon.

Everybody turned to Kenta for an interpretation. "Pabumon can't describe much with words, so Angie thought we should show it pictures to see if we can get a reaction."

With Pabumon sitting on a pedestal, nervously darting its eyes between the giants surrounding it, Angie held up a stack of pictures while Thomas explained, "By using visual stimuli, we've discovered another culprit." As an example, Angie showed Pabumon a picture of Blossomon. Pabumon cowered and jumped off the pedestal.

While Kenta picked it up and put it back on, Agumon joined Gaomon. "Hey, Tai! What brings you down here?"

"Oh, uh..." Tai pointed at Pabumon. "Work."

"If you have time later, maybe we could go for a walk outside the castle or something."

Tai narrowed his eyes at Agumon. "Sure... with _my_ Agumon."

"Dammit!" Agumon exclaimed.

Gaomon shook his head and returned Agumon's arm bracers. "I told you it wasn't going to work."

"If the other one's able to fool Boss, he's never living it down."

Tai watched Agumon storm off. Angie sighed. "Really, this is what they do here. Can we continue?"

With their full attention again, Angie started showing pictures of various Digimon to Pabumon. Botamon got no reaction. Piedmon got no reaction. Kazemon prompted Pabumon to bounce closer and rub itself against it.

"I don't think I want to know what's up with that," Thomas said.

Finally, one picture had Pabumon so scared it jumped into Gaomon's gloves and buried itself in his fur.

Thomas took the picture from Angie. "We've been doing this since yesterday afternoon and this is the only picture that prompted that severe a reaction."

He handed the picture to Tai, who raised an eyebrow. "Who is this?"

"We're going to go upstairs and find out. Whomever it is, Mikey's team is going to find him."

"I'll let them know to get ready." Tai turned to Angie and Kenta. "Good work guys."

Tai rushed out hurriedly. Angie narrowed her eyes. "What's up with him?"

Thomas scratched his chin. "Judging by his hair, clothes and behavior... it's probably best not to speculate."

Angie frowned. "Yeah, I think you're right."

* * *

By the time Thomas returned to Command, Tai and Izzy had already identified the culprit. Kari was in the process of calling a few names upstairs. Tai told him to start pinpointing the target's location. They had records for most of the Digimon they had encountered in the past, so it was a fairly easy process. Once the orders were given and the records were handed over, Tai resumed a conversation that must have started before Thomas had arrived.

"Are you saying you don't think he did it?"

Izzy shook his head. "It's hard to say. Petaldramon is absolutely capable of this level of cruelty. But it's unlike him to start trouble like this. He's not usually this ambitious."

"Look, I saw Pabumon's reaction. He-"

"He's not the ringleader," Davis blurted. Tai and Izzy stopped and looked at him. "That's what Izzy's trying to say, right?"

"I'm saying there could be a myriad of reasons Petaldramon would do this." Izzy nodded at Davis. "There's no way to confirm that he was acting under orders, but it makes sense."

"What it boils down to is that Mikey's mission is more complicated than simply holding Petaldramon accountable for his actions," said Thomas. He entered a string of commands into his computer. "Found him. Unsurprisingly, he's in the woods."

The next three to arrive were Mikey, Takuya and Koji. Thomas stood up to greet them, ushering them into the meeting room next to Tai's desk.

Tai joined them, still holding the picture. "All right Mikey, we think we know who led the attack." He put the picture on the table. "This is Petaldramon. Takuya and Koji should find him familiar."

"We should?" Takuya stared at the picture, trying to jog a memory.

"Our file says your team fought him originally," Thomas said. He pulled something up on a tablet computer. "Beast Spirit of Wood?"

Koji snapped his fingers and pointed. "He was the burger guy."

"Oh yeah!" Takuya nodded eagerly. "Yeah! Now I remember!"

"Do you remember anything about the sort of danger he poses or any specific tactics to beating him?" Thomas asked.

"Man, that was a while ago. Not that he made much of an impression to begin with. I remember that he absorbed a whole forest to try to stop us." Takuya turned to Mikey. "Sounds crazy, doesn't it?"

Mikey grinned. "Naw, half the guys I faced did something like that. How'd you beat him?"

Takuya shrugged. "We kept wailing on him until he stopped moving."

"Our team didn't even really finish him off," Koji said. "We just knocked him down. Duskmon ended up taking his fractal code."

"Well, if you think about it, technically Duskmon was-"

"Don't finish that sentence," Koji interrupted.

"Still, it's lucky that you guys already faced him," Mikey said. "Anything we know in advance helps."

"That's actually quite common," Thomas said. "Almost all of our major battles have been against enemies that one of our groups has faced in the past."

"At some point, we'll have to sit down and get a recap of everybody you had to fight, Mikey," Tai said. "We'll probably see them again some time. But we can worry about that later. Get your team ready. Thomas will have all the details ready before you leave."

* * *

Marcus Damon didn't realize what he signed up for when he created Yoshi's Sexy Beach Party. As it turned out, party planning was a lot of work and people were getting genuinely excited for it. What was supposed to be a ruse to get Yoshi some action was actually anticipated more than Koichi's entertainment plans. With the party a day away, Kazu was taking care of food arrangements and, in an ingenious move, they convinced Yoshi herself to take over the invitations. She agreed to in order to halt distribution of that flier. Marcus figured it would be a good idea to scope out the actual beach.

"Hey, Agumon! Let's go already! I want to get back before it's dark!" Marcus shouted. He had argued that he should be exempt from the rule about never leaving the castle without a Digimon since his fists were defense enough. For some reason, nobody in Command bought it. Agumon arrived, smiled at Marcus and led the way out without a word. Marcus shrugged and followed him.

Behind them, a second Agumon watched in dismay. "Oh, Boss, you're killing me!"

"He's not even doing a good job pretending to be you," Gaomon said.

"Yeah, you couldn't have kept your mouth shut that long," added Lalamon. She floated towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Lalamon turned around. "Are you kidding? I want to see how this goes!"

"Wait up." Gaomon followed, but looked back at Agumon. "Are you coming?"

Agumon shook his head. "Nah, go on ahead. It's too upsetting."

Gaomon and Lalamon followed Marcus and the other Agumon out, keeping a good distance behind them. Throughout the whole walk, Marcus would attempt to make conversation, but Agumon refused to converse back, only responding with mumbles.

"He's not even trying to get the voice right," Gaomon said.

"That's no fun!" Lalamon exclaimed. "Put some effort into it!"

The only feasible party beach was on the other side of the river with the only bridge across requiring a lengthy detour. If not for this inconvenience, it would have undoubtedly hosted sexy beach parties every week. Marcus scoped it out, thinking of some locations for a fire pit and food table. He also heard rumors of a volleyball net somewhere in storage, so he found a spot for that. He ran every suggestion past Agumon, who hummed in agreement every time.

Marcus finished his tour by walking along the edge of the water. Swimming was going to happen, and he wanted to ensure that anyone trying it wouldn't destroy their feet on the rocks. He smiled in satisfaction, then turned to Agumon.

"This place is perfect! We need to get out here more often!"

Again, Agumon nodded, adding a shrug.

Marcus frowned. "Okay, you've been awfully quiet today. You want to get back on the road and find the action too, don't you?"

Agumon looked around, but wasn't going to say no to a provided excuse. He wasn't going to say anything at all.

"You know what we need to do?" Marcus grinned and slammed his fist into his palm. "We need to fight."

Agumon backpedaled, eyes widening. "What?!" he blurted.

Marcus didn't notice the different voice. "It's been a while since we locked fists. Let's see how strong we've gotten."

Behind the bushes, Lalamon floated up. "We have to stop this!"

Gaomon shook his head. "It's too late now. That would be embarrassing for everybody."

"Oh, you just want to see how this plays out."

"So what if I do?"

Marcus readied himself in a fighting stance several paces away from Agumon. Agumon stood there and held up his arms in an effort to mirror him. "Okay, ready? It's fighting time!" And Marcus charged full speed at Agumon.

Agumon didn't run forward, but he also didn't run away. But when he realized that Marcus was absolutely serious and coming at him with a punch, he closed his eyes and lashed out in self-defense.

He missed, but Marcus was right on target. His fist stopped right in front of Agumon's snout. Which Marcus then flicked with his finger, grinning. "At least you didn't run away or hit me with a fireball. Tai would be proud." He leaned back and walked away.

"Wait, you knew?" Agumon cried.

"With that schnoz of yours? Might as well have been wearing a sign. I wanted to see how long you could keep it up." Marcus smiled back. "That and my Agumon couldn't have kept his mouth shut that long. Tai's damn lucky."

* * *

Jeremy Tsurgi had been annoyed at all the extra work this concert required, but as the crowd started to file in for the big event, it began to feel worth it. For a setup that consisted of whatever was laying around and whatever gear Koichi could get down the river, it looked professional enough. He was only disappointed that Mikey and Nene wouldn't be able to see his handiwork as they had already left for their assignment.

Granted, JP was the real mastermind. "Good thing you knew how to do all this," Jeremy said.

"Oh, I didn't know any more than you did when I got here," JP replied. "I read up on all this over the years. That and Yolei used to do sound engineering back home and had a few pointers." He folded his arms. "This is the best system we've ever had. Hope this guy's worth it."

"So where did Koichi find this guy?"

"Takuya ran into him once on a mission and told Koichi about him. It's pretty exciting. I think it's the first time we've had outside entertainment."

As the hall filled up with both humans and many of the Digimon, Koichi joined the engineers backstage. "Well, now I'm nervous."

"This'll be awesome," JP said, slapping Koichi on the back. "Don't worry about it."

"That's what you said when we tried karaoke."

"What happened when you tried karaoke?" Jeremy asked.

"We accidentally revived a giant Digimon who tore up half a city." Koichi sighed. "I might settle for that tonight."

JP frowned. "What's wrong?"

"Well, until the sound check I hadn't actually heard him perform. I sort of took Takuya's word for it." With a cough, he added, "Jeremy says he may also have a few, um... character issues."

"Character issues?" JP asked, glancing at Jeremy.

Jeremy held his hands up. "All I was saying was that we had problems when we ran into him."

"That doesn't mean anything." JP turned to Koichi. "Ask Thomas about Gotsumon."

"Yeah, but-" Koichi tried to explain, but hushed up when the big star of the evening strolled in.

"Hey, what's the big hold up here?" Etemon wrapped his arms around Koichi and JP's shoulders. "My fans are out there waiting for me. Little less conversation, guys. Let's get this show on the road."

Koichi nodded aggressively. "Yeah, yeah, whenever you're ready." He gestured to the stage.

Etemon grinned and clutched Koichi's shoulder. "Hold on there, son. You expect me to go up there unannounced? Get up there and give me a proper intro!" He shoved Koichi onto the stage. "C'mon! Go, cat, go!"

Just like that, Koichi was center stage, facing his peers. He took a deep breath and stood on his tiptoes in order to reach the microphone. "Um... hi. Thanks for attending. I hope you're ready to, um, rock, because we have a full concert lined up here. He's very happy to be here performing for us, so I hope everybody has a good time. So let's give a big hand for, uh... Etemon."

If his lack of passion didn't damper the applause, the name Etemon certainly did. Takuya cheered, and a few others like Marcus, Tommy and Zoe applauded. Pretty much everybody else stared back in confusion. Even Izzy, who signed off on this in the first place, was wincing and trying to avoid eye contact with Tai.

Etemon sauntered to the mic, guitar in hand. "C'mon, I've played cemeteries more lively than this. Make some noise!" There was even less response this time as everyone who had applauded before sensed their faux pas. "All right fine, this number will get you clapping." He nodded to his all-Gazimon backing band and they started to play.

The music wasn't the worst thing in the world; the ill-fated karaoke night proved that. But Etemon's off-key crooning wasn't good by any stretch, so he was never going to win over the hostile crowd. The only applause after his first song was due to politeness, mostly from those who knew better than to make him mad.

Tai snuck out of his seat and poked his head backstage. "Koichi, what the hell were you thinking?"

"You're the last one who should be criticizing his singing, Tai," JP said.

Tai ignored him. "You do realize this guy is a technical mastermind that can subdue whole continents, right?"

"I didn't actually," Koichi said. "He told us he just wanted to play. And so far, that's all he's doing."

"You better be right about that. Either way, Ryo's on standby."

JP and Koichi gulped. As the head of castle security, Ryo on standby meant one thing...

"Hey hey hey!" They heard Etemon shout from the stage. "Who's leaving the building before Etemon?"

Everybody turned around. Those who did in time caught Ryo ignoring Etemon and running out the front door. "No walking out of my shows, you hear me? That's mighty cruel. But while you're looking back there, that's where you'll find the merch table. Plenty of shirts and CDs for sale." Nobody was going to tell him the castle didn't have anything resembling money.

As the show continued, the polite applause faded with every song. Patience wore thin, and it finally broke when Etemon started into a song he had already played. It was Rika who snapped first and headed back to her tower.

Etemon stopped mid-verse and shouted, "Hey, what did I say about leaving?" Rika waved him off. He leaped from the stage, bounced off the floor once, and landed in front of her, a hand raised. "This'll teach you to interrupt me..."

Rika didn't budge as he brought his hand down. Renamon appeared between them, caught it, and pushed him back. Etemon responded by grabbing Renamon's shoulders and flinging her into the wall.

Practically everybody stood up simultaneously, a few of the Digimon with front row seats already advancing. Rika tried to sidestep Etemon to get to her partner, only successful once he realized he had more to deal with. Unfortunately, he was ready to.

"Concert Crush!" With a strum of his guitar, his attack incapacitated the room. Anyone who had stood up was now on their knees and clutching their ears. Etemon stared them down. "Now, everyone sit tight while I bring the house down."

Before he got back to the stage, the front doors flew open and Justimon charged forward, leaped over the tables and kicked Etemon's guitar away. Etemon grabbed Justimon's arm and flipped him over his shoulder and into a lighting rack. It fell backwards, taking with it part of the curtain separating the backstage area.

As Etemon and Justimon grappled, the Gazimon had left their instruments on the stage and tried to help out. They each received a boxing glove to the face.

On the floor, they looked up at Gaomon and Thomas. "How... you weren't affected?"

Thomas took plugs out of both his and Gaomon's ears. "Sorry, but I'm not one for the concert scene," said Thomas. Another series of punches from Gaomon laid them up for good. Thomas turned to Justimon. "Need a hand?"

"That would be nice," Justimon replied. Despite the difference in level, Etemon's stout defensive ability was preventing Justimon from taking him out.

"DNA Charge!" Under Thomas's command, Gaomon digivolved to Gaogamon and joined the fight.

The additional firepower made the outcome clear, but Etemon was persistent, getting up from everything Justimon or Gaogamon threw at him. One attack sent him crashing into the stage, smashing a good piece of it. He still got up.

As they fought, the others began to shake off the effects of Etemon's sound attack. Takato already regretted staking out a table up front. "Jeri... are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Jeri answered. But then she saw the downed lights and the curtain backstage... and nobody else. "Oh no..." She waited for an opening in the Etemon battle and ran behind the curtain. Takato yelled and tried to follow, but Gaogamon blocked his way, staring down Etemon.

Ultimately, Gaogamon kept Etemon occupied and still long enough for Justimon to strike. "Justice Kick!" The attack knocked Etemon crashing into a speaker, which fell back and off the stage.

Before Etemon could get his bearings back, Gaogamon pinned him to the ground. Justimon looked at Thomas. "So what do we do with him?"

Thomas motioned toward the front door. "Return to sender." Justimon picked him up, hopped on Gaogamon and off they ran. Thomas made sure to take care of the Gazimon and everybody exhaled at once.

Almost everybody. "Medic!" Jeremy shouted. Not only did Joe ran towards him, but so did several others, including Takato. Behind the curtain, they found Jeri, her arm pinned under the fallen speaker, wailing in pain. JP and Koichi managed to lift the speaker off, but it was a gruesome sight underneath.

Joe hovered over Jeri before anyone in the growing crowd could take a long look at the damage, ordering JP to find something that could be used for transport. Jeremy cleared away a long equipment cart and wheeled it up to Jeri. Together, the three of them helped her on and cleared space to get her to the medical facility. Jeremy motioned to Angie to have Cutemon join them.

Koichi could only watch in horror. He wanted to race after her, but before he could take a step, Takato pinned him against the stage.

"This is your fault!" Takato screamed, teeth clenched. "You brought that monster in here and now Jeri's-"

Koji pulled him away, barking, "Back off, Takato! Don't touch him!" He held Takato's shirt as the tamer tried to break free.

Takato jerked around and his hands grabbed Koji's wrists, eyes still shooting daggers at Koichi. "Let me go!"

"Guys, stop it!" Tai stepped between them, pulling Koji away but keeping his hands on Takato's shoulders. "Don't make this worse."

Takato stopped resisting but still glared at Koichi. Koichi stared back. His will had been defeated long ago, but it didn't matter to Takato. "It's your fault Jeri's hurt."

"It doesn't matter," Tai said. "Go cool off. You know we don't stand for that." He nudged Takato away before turning to Koichi.

Koichi had his head down and his hands shook. Koji had an arm around his shoulder, but it didn't help. "He's right, isn't he?" Koichi said. "This is my fault."

Tai sighed and said, "Clean this up as best as you can. We'll talk about it in the morning." Then he walked away.

After a few moments, Koichi stood and pulled down what was left of the backstage curtain. Most of the residents were still hovering around their tables, talking about what had happened or still trying to get the vibrations of Etemon's guitar out of their ears.

Everybody stopped talking and looked at Koichi. He put his head down and shuffled away.

* * *

Suzie Wong refused to admit that she was getting tired. After all, she volunteered to take one of the night watch shifts. The others only let her because they knew it was a bad idea to let Mikey stay up the whole night, but nobody else wanted to relieve him. Although they knew Petaldramon's general vicinity, they wanted visual before charging into the forest after him. The two Monitamon that had been dispatched hours ago were still looking for him. Everyone on the new team was thankful they weren't the ones hunting him down in the dark.

Lopmon poked Suzie in the shoulder, catching her from dozing off for the second time. "If you want to sleep, I can stand watch."

"No!" Suzie protested. "This is my job. Rest up; we might need you."

"I understand why they insist that the other Digimon sleep, but I'm not as essential."

Suzie huffed. "Fine." She leaned back against the grass and looked up at the digital sky, hating how badly she wanted a nap. There was no denying that she would have to convince the others that she was more than a ringer to fill out the team roster. After years of being relegated to household chores, she wanted to be taken seriously as a tamer. If that was impossible, she would be a Fusion Fighter.

If anyone was going to treat her as something other than the annoying seven year old she used to be, it was this new group. Everybody else in the castle took their cues from the other tamers, failing to regard her as anything other than an accidental team member that needed to be protected at all times. Suzie hoped Mikey and his team could still view her otherwise, and the prospects were good so far. They wasted no time in making her a squawker for communicating and were even envious of the modify cards Ryo had hooked her up with. Now she needed to prove she could use them.

"Miss Suzie?" chimed the remaining Monitamon. Suzie's eyes snapped open and she crawled over to it. "We have located the target. He's currently stationary."

"Oh, awesome! I'll wake up Mikey and see what he wants to do."

"Roger that. We'll be on stand by."

Suzie woke Mikey up and gave him the news. If Petaldramon was hiding in the middle of the woods, Mikey decided that striking when he was presumably asleep was the best strategy. Plus he had already figured out the best way to approach without waking up the entire forest.

Ten minutes later, the team was awake and flying over the woods, either on Shoutmon X5 or MailBirdramon. They flew slowly, looking for the signal, which came in the form of a flashing light at the top of one of the trees. Mikey gave the order to descend slowly, low enough for the humans and smaller Digimon to join the Monitamon in the trees.

"He's directly below us," said a Monitamon. Mikey nodded, pulled the components of Shoutmon X5 back into his and Nene's Fusion Loaders and climbed down to the lowest branch of the canopy. Nene, Suzie, Shoutmon and Lopmon joined him, with Christopher and Ewan remaining a branch higher. Dark as it was, they were able to spot Petaldramon, curled up and sleeping at the edge of a clearing.

It was a perfect place to ambush him, but for one problem- Petaldramon had an eye open and stared back at them. By the time they noticed this, he lashed out his tongue. It grabbed the branch and yanked it off the tree, sending Mikey, Nene and Suzie crashing to the ground. Petaldramon sat up suddenly and shouted, "Leaf Cyclone!" A mass of leaves flew at Christopher and Ewan, blasting them deeper into the forest.

By the time Mikey, Nene and Suzie could get off the ground, Petaldramon was ready again. "Thorn Jab!" Vines shot out of the ground, ensnaring the three of them and their Digimon. Mikey's Fusion Loader fell to the ground.

Petaldramon paced between and around his captives. "You have any idea what time it is? You shouldn't be making so much noise."

"Did you destroy that village with Blossomon?" Mikey asked.

"So what if I did? Not much you can do about it now."

Nene continue to struggle, but was unable to get free or reach her Fusion Loader. "What do you plan on doing with us?"

"Me? Nothing. It's still my bedtime. But don't worry..." As Petaldramon walked away, several sets of eyes opened around them. They crept closer, eventually revealing themselves as several Woodmon, with a single Cherrymon joining them. "...these guys will take good care of you." He looked back at Mikey. "You'll be joining your friends soon enough."

Mikey looked up. His friends? Christopher and Ewan had been blown out of the tree, but he was barely worried about them. They were probably safer than he was. "Our friends? What do you mean?"

Petaldramon chuckled. "You forgot about 'em... typical." He walked away as the Woodmon began to crowd around them.

Mikey was helpless without his Fusion Loader and Nene was unable to reach hers. Suzie was barely able to get fingertips to her D-Power, but her other hand had slightly more freedom. It was able to reach her card holster. Not that she could see, but with the Woodmon drawing near, she didn't have time to be picky. She grabbed a card at random and stretched her hands together as much as she could, fidgeting until the card ran through the D-Power's slot.

"Digi-Modify!" she shouted. "Whatever the heck this does- activate!"

"Thank you, Suzie," Lopmon said calmly. With brute force, she pulled her arms apart, breaking free of the vines. She bounced forward and punched out one of the Woodmon. This gave her enough time to run over to Shoutmon and pull him free.

"All right! Leave the rest to me!" Shoutmon pulled out his microphone and charged. "Rock and Roller!" It worked fine to hold off one Woodmon, but it took both him and the super-charged Lopmon to keep the whole troop from reaching Mikey and Nene. None of them were staying down and Lopmon's strength boost soon ran out.

Nobody saw the flash that streaked past the two captives, but they did see Mikey and Nene's vines fall apart. Mikey dashed over to his Fusion Loader, grabbed it and gave a thumb's up to Tuwarmon. "You made good time," Mikey said. "Where's Christopher?"

Two trees fell over behind him. MetalGreymon stood in their place, carrying both Christopher and Ewan. "There's Christopher!" Mikey cheered.

Ewan looked back at the long path of felled trees behind them. "Did we have to knock over every tree along the way?"

Christopher only grinned. "That's fewer trees for Petaldramon to absorb. Give me an hour and I'll take out the whole forest."

With everybody who couldn't fight able to find cover and everybody who could doing so, the Woodmon went down in short notice. This left Cherrymon, but a combined assault from MetalGreymon, Shoutmon X4 and Sparrowmon was more than enough to overwhelm him.

However, before falling, Cherrymon got one last attack in. He aimed it at the humans ducking behind a tree. All of them dove away in time... except the tree, which fell towards Lopmon.

"Lopmon!" Suzie ran to her partner and dove in for the rescue. Problem was that Mikey did the same thing. Suzie gathered Lopmon up, but her head collided with Mikey's and both fell to the ground. The tree barely missed Suzie and Lopmon. Instead, it landed on Mikey's ankle.

"Mikey!" Suzie dropped Lopmon and drove her shoulder into the tree in an attempt to get it off him. It was as much about channeling her anger into something as it was saving Mikey. "What... are you doing... she's my partner!" Lopmon, Ewan and Nene helped her free Mikey. It took them all to restrain her from him. "We didn't need your help!"

"She's right," Christopher said, backpedaling to the scene while still keeping an eye on the concluding battle. Mikey was gritting his teeth, trying to conceal both his injury and the amount of pain he was in. The tears in his eyes gave himself away. Christopher didn't care. "You're more important to the mission than she is. If anything, she should be diving in to save you."

Suzie sneered at Christopher. Lopmon said, "You didn't have to put it like that."

"Guys, you're not helping," Mikey said. He tried to force himself to his feet, but there was no chance of putting weight on his damaged foot. Nene caught him. "Let's keep going. I'm sure he didn't get too far."

"Mikey, you can't walk," said Nene.

"You guys go on ahead. I'll be fine."

They heard rustling all around them. The troop of Woodmon they had defeated may have just been the first wave. "I'm not convinced of that," Ewan said. "Plus we still may need you. We don't know exactly how strong Petaldramon is."

"Should I knock over more trees?" MetalGreymon asked.

More Woodmon began to arrive, again blocking the path to Petaldramon. "No. Let's pull back." Nene held up her Fusion Loader. "Shoutmon X4! Sparrowmon! Digi-fuse!"

Shoutmon X5 gathered most of the team up and flew them out of there. Christopher de-fused MetalGreymon so MailBirdramon could take care of the rest.

They flew above the tree cover and headed back to the castle. Mikey was still in pain, but stared down at the forest. He was annoyed that they failed in their mission, particularly that it was his fault, but he couldn't help but wonder about Petaldramon's threat. Joining their friends? Mikey didn't know what Petaldramon meant, but he knew one day he'd have the opportunity to find out.

* * *

Jeri Katou slept through the night as peacefully as she could have. Joe had gotten her arm in a cast and Cutemon dulled any pain, so the only disruption was Mikey's early morning admission. A door opened and she smiled eagerly. Somehow she knew the caller was for her. She just didn't know who.

The curtain pulled open and she found Koichi staring back. He looked ready to cry. She smiled even more and said, "Good morning."

He stepped in, closed the curtain and fell to his knees. "I am so sorry."

She shook her head. "Don't be. It happened. I've dealt with a lot worse. You know that."

He leaned in and took her good hand. "It just kills me that of everyone, you-"

She pulled her hand away and held up a finger. She pointed at the bed behind the other curtain. "We don't want to wake up the neighbors." Jeri's inflections suggested something else entirely, which Koichi understood.

"But I mean it," she continued. "Don't worry about what happened to me. Joe says I should limit my chores for a few days and I'll miss Yoshi's party. That's all."

Koichi sighed. "I don't think I was invited."

Jeri took his hand again and raised her eyebrows. "Their loss."

"I don't think I have a lot of friends right now after all this. I'm sure I'll hear it from Command."

She tugged on his hand and pulled him in for a kiss, then whispered, "You still have one here. Don't ever forget that."

He pulled away and nodded. "I'd better go. I'm sure you'll have more visitors later." She nodded and he walked out.

As he opened the door out of the medical facility, it swung open on its own. Takato was on the other side. Koichi's face went white and he blurted, "I was just seeing how she was doing."

Takato sighed and slid past Koichi without a word. He found Jeri's bed. She smiled back the moment she saw him. "Are you okay?" he asked urgently.

Jeri nodded. "I'm fine. I just need to take it easy for a few days. I'll have to skip the party."

"Aw, I'm not going to have any fun without you."

"I'm sure you will."

He shook his head. "What did Koichi want?"

Her eyes still fixed on his, she answered, "He wanted to make sure I was all right. It was very nice of him."

"Well, it doesn't change the fact that he never should have invited Etemon in here. He's the reason all this happened."

She looked down. "He knows. Nobody needs to remind him."

Takato kneeled and took her hand. "Jeri, you know I can't stand seeing you hurt. I love you."

"I love you too," she replied. "But you don't have to fight for me every time something like this happens."

"But I..." He tried to put it into words, but gave up, surged forward and kissed her. He didn't stop, pushing her back onto her pillow. One hand found its way around her waist. As he continued, it strayed higher.

At that point, Jeri broke it off. "Takato," she said, taking a breath. "Don't. We'll wake up Mikey."

Takato looked at the curtain, but turned back and stole another kiss. Then he heard Mikey shout, "Hey, don't worry about me. You two do what you gotta do." Both of them blushed and everything came to a halt.

"On second thought, maybe I should get going," Takato said, standing up and backing out the door. Jeri chuckled to herself, but her face fell into a frown before long. She was happy to have two visitors in such quick succession. There was no doubt that one of them meant more. She hated which one it was.

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda was totally relaxed, stretched out on the beach and taking in the sun for as long as it stuck around. The party didn't officially start until nightfall, but everything was ready well in advance, affording her the chance to actually enjoy the atmosphere before everybody arrived to spoil it. Sunflowmon had already ferried in a few of the partygoers, but for the most part they kept to themselves, either going for a swim or getting first dibs at the snack table. Nobody had bothered her.

"Oh, Yoshi, that is perfect!" Except, of course, for Kazu. Yoshi opened her eyes and lifted her head, but he held his hands up. "Don't move. Let them see this first thing! Make 'em thirsty!" Kazu picked up a bottle of sunscreen next to her. "You're even oiled up! You're a pro!"

"Did it occur to you that I might just be trying to relax and get some sun?" she muttered.

"Sun's going down in fifteen minutes; you'll never get a good tan in time. You should have done that yesterday. Wearing that swimsuit around the castle would give them a nice preview!"

"Go away, Kazu." She closed her eyes.

He remained silent, but he did not leave. Feeling his stare, she opened her eyes and said, "What?"

"You know, Marcus and I are really taking a hit for you. A sexy beach party and we didn't invite all the girls? It's kinda tragic, really."

"I didn't tell you not to invite any girls. That was your idea."

"I'm eliminating distractions! You don't want to get upstaged by Zoe or Sora, right?"

Yoshi groaned. "I really don't care. Besides, you got Mimi here." Marcus and Yoshi had decided that the party should be intended for the three active teams. This both avoided drama about who was invited and ensured that most of the new kids would attend. Mimi's attendance was payment for providing the food.

Kazu stopped bothering Yoshi, and for all she knew may have actually left to admire Mimi. She didn't care, closing her eyes and absorbing whatever sunlight was left in the day. "I'm hotter than Sora anyway," she mumbled.

It ended sooner than she had hoped, and once the night took over she opened her eyes and sat up again. She heard cheering all around, and saw that rows of torches were now serving as light sources and the full party had started. Mimi served food and members of all three teams were present, clad in assorted swimwear or beach clothes, and having a great time.

Marcus and Takuya were putting the finishing touches on the volleyball net, while Takato and Rika passed a ball back and forth. Once the net was up, everybody gathered around it.

"All right, how about we do each of the teams against each other?" Marcus said.

"We'll take the new guys first, then we'll both play Marcus's team," Takuya added.

Ewan raised a hand. "But we're short someone."

Mimi charged in and wrapped her arms around Ewan's shoulders. "Ooh, I'll fill in!" Ewan lowered his hand, grumbling.

Yoshi didn't pay much attention at first. She had no objection to volleyball, but didn't expect Marcus to turn this into such a big deal, made worse when the Monitamon emerged to serve as both referees and scoreboards. Furthermore, if the plan really was to introduce her to the new kids, this was a terrible way to do it. It was bad enough that Mikey was back home nursing his injury.

"So what are you thinking?" Marcus slid up to her. Kazu was quick to follow.

"About what?" Yoshi folded her arms. "How am I supposed to talk to them if we're stuck playing?"

"Oh, this isn't part of the plan. I just wanted to show up Takuya's team." Marcus grinned.

"Still, you can get a good look at them," Kazu said, his eyes fixated on Nene and Mimi, both wearing bikinis, leaping to block Yolei's spike. "I'm enjoying this."

Team Investigation won after Ewan spiked the ball between Koji and Takato. While they looked at each other and pointed fingers, Mimi was all over Ewan. Yoshi frowned. "I think someone beat me to the punch."

Marcus slapped Yoshi's back. "Never mind that now, we gotta whoop these guys." Yoshi rubbed her bare back, hoping there wouldn't be a mark. Despite having no competitive impulse, Marcus and Kazu pushed her onto the court. Rika pulled them and Henry into a huddle.

"Okay, here's the scouting report," Rika said. And she presented a concise and brutal plan for defeating their opponents. She concluded with, "we're gonna walk all over them."

Yoshi wasn't nearly as passionate as the game started, but she appeared to be the only one. Even Mimi and Suzie on the other team were playing hard. Suzie set it for Mimi, who slammed the ball over the net in front of Yoshi.

Instinctively, Yoshi dropped to her knees, sprawled out and dug the ball out before it hit the sand. Kazu set up Henry, who drilled it off Ewan's shoulder. Yoshi was left with her elbows scraped, and far too much sand clinging to her body. Rika stood over her, grinning as she extended a hand. Yoshi smiled and took it.

"Game on," Yoshi said, cracking her knuckles.

Suddenly, she was into it, playing as intensely as everybody else. By the time it was her turn to be subbed out, she didn't want to leave. She high-fived Marcus into the game and barely got a chance to breathe on the sidelines before Mimi grabbed her hands.

"What a great party!" Mimi exclaimed. She let go, only to brush a bunch of sand off Yoshi's breasts. "Everyone's having such a great time."

"Oh, uh, thanks!" Yoshi replied, looking away to hide her eye tic.

"You know, maybe you should be the one running all the special events."

Yoshi turned back, eyes widening. "What?!"

"That's not a bad idea," Cody said. He, Yolei and Takato were watching behind them. He snuck a glance at Takuya and Koji, off on their own plotting a strategy for their second game. "You'd probably be better than Koichi."

Yolei nodded. "Rumor has it Kari's taking over Odaiba Day planning because of what happened yesterday."

"Really?" Takato asked.

"Well, it makes sense, doesn't it? When was the last time Koichi got anything right? This was just the last straw."

"There's no way Command's letting Odaiba Day get screwed up," Cody added.

Takato looked down. Nobody noticed. They kept chattering away at Koichi's incompetence and how much better Yoshi would be at the job.

Suzie tagged in Mimi, but the plaudits continued. Amidst all the compliments, Yoshi started blushing. "I mean, Marcus and Kazu did a lot of the work."

Cody nodded. "So you know how to delegate. That's very important."

"What are you all talking about?" Suzie asked.

"We're thinking Yoshi should take over event planning for Koichi." Yolei wrapped her arm around Yoshi's and squeezed it. "I mean, Yoshi is pretty awesome."

"Yeah, Yoshi's totally awesome!"

"Guys..." Yoshi knew she didn't deserve half the praise she was getting, and she had no interest in stealing Koichi's job, but it didn't matter. She was touched. For the years she had been here, she had always felt like her age distanced herself from everybody else. Whether it was totally earned or not, it was nice to be admired and respected. Marcus and Kazu's silly plan to find her a lover may not bear fruit, but she would at least come out of it feeling loved.

Yoshi returned to the game ready to play, taking over for Henry. The moment he left the court, Suzie was all over him. "You didn't expect me to keep that shot in the air, did you?"

"Yeah, that was good," Henry said, humoring her. "You're doing all right."

"I told you I can take care of myself." She grinned and went back to cheering for her team.

Henry shook his head. "I don't know. Look at what happened to Mikey."

"That was his fault. He thought he needed to save Lopmon, but I was on top of it."

Seeing an opportunity, Yolei inserted herself into their conversation. "Think of it this way, if these kids will always have Suzie's back like that, how bad could it be?"

"Hey, who's side are you on?" Henry asked, snickering.

"I'm on Team Little Sister!" She high-fived Suzie for emphasis. "Fact is, they got through one mission with Suzie intact and it sounds like she did a pretty good job."

"Sure did!" Suzie charged back in as Christopher came out. Henry watched as their side played. Despite her youth and outsider status, the team counted on her to control her part of the court, and she did so effectively. They made up for shortcomings like her lack of height, but otherwise considered her one of them.

"See? She's fine," Yolei said, putting an arm around Henry's shoulder. "You have nothing to worry about."

Henry smiled. "Well, I'll always worry about her. But I guess I should start focusing on other things too." He wrapped his arm around her waist. "Suppose I'd make a pretty lousy boyfriend if I went back on patrol without spending any time with you."

She waved down the comment. "Only a little."

"Maybe I could get away from Suzie and crash with you tonight."

Poking him in the chest, she said, "At the very least. I was eying up those bushes over there after we're done playing." Henry's face turned red and he was left without a response. Yolei giggled and kissed him.

* * *

Takato Matsuki had heard enough at the party to know what he had to do. The two towers in the castle were identical, but the trip to the top floor of Ophani Tower still felt like unknown territory. Still, he ventured up there and knocked on the door to the left room. It took a while, but finally Koichi asked, "Who is it?"

"Takato. I, uh... wanted to talk."

He heard some shuffling before the door opened and Koichi stepped outside. He was wearing pajama pants and no shirt. It made Takato realize what time it was; the party lasted well into the night, so he shouldn't have been surprised that most of the other residents had already gone to bed.

"Did I wake you up?" Takato asked.

"Not quite," Koichi kept his head down. "What do you want?"

Takato took a deep breath. "Well, I uh... I wanted to say I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. You didn't mean for anything to happen and I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."

"Oh." Koichi nodded, but didn't pick his head up. "You don't have to do that. It was my fault that it happened. But don't worry, I won't try to do anything like that for a while."

"Why not?"

Koichi shook his head. "Because it's always a disaster. I feel like everyone hates me because this keeps happening. I know it'll be a long time before Command trusts me again."

"No... don't listen to them." Takato put a hand on Koichi's shoulder, finally causing him to look up. "You need to keep trying. We need you to keep trying. The sort of stuff you do are the only things we have to look forward to. I mean, we were all really excited for Yoshi's party. There's no reason you can't do the same thing, only something that all of us can be involved in."

"I..." Koichi was taken aback by the encouragement.

"I bet next time you'll knock it out of the park. Just don't give up, okay?"

Koichi's mouth hung open, but he nodded and said, "Okay. Um... thank you. And again, I'm really sorry about what happened."

"Don't be. I know I kind of lost it there, but you know Jeri means a lot to me. I can't stand her getting hurt. I love her."

"I understand." Koichi nodded. "Good night."

Takato stepped back and boarded the next elevator. Koichi returned to his room and shut the door. The lights were off, but he heard sobbing by the wall next to the door. He slumped over, leaning against the wall next to her.

"He was the only one to say anything nice, wasn't he?" Jeri asked.

Koichi nodded. "He's a good guy."

Her sobbing continued. "And we're..." Her head fell into his chest. "...we're terrible."

He rubbed her head, staring forward into the darkness. "Yes we are." But all he could do was clutch her tighter.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 6: "Grand Experiment"**  
Christopher accidentally spills Rika's involvement in the Quartzmon incident, leading the officers to start looking for answers. An omission in the annual Odaiba Day memorial riles Mikey. Keenan returns and tries re-adjusting to society while society tries adjusting to him.

" _What's the point of having a memorial if you're going to forget someone?"_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
Other than the voices, there are actually a lot of physical differences between the two Agumons, so it's not that surprising that neither Tai nor Marcus would have a problem picking out which one is theirs.

The Etemon scene was not just an excuse to make a bunch of bad Elvis references, but all the same I'm not going to pass up the opportunity. Who wouldn't want to hear a Crispin Freeman character make a bad Elvis reference?

xxxxxxxxxxx  
B00OVP3GIS


	7. 06- Grand Experiment

**Author's Note**  
Going to take a break after this episode in order to get the backlog back up. System Restore will be heading straight through to Hunters, and the aim is to be at a point where I'm comfortable posting again once it ends in November. The most important thing is being able to post regularly until the episode 13 midway point. In the meantime, I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the story so far!

 **Neverworld**

 _Run on the wheel. Jog through the maze.  
I'll break the seal maybe one of these days._  
 _Boil it down. Flatten it out._  
 _Distilling the essence of what life's all about._  
 _I'm still waiting for the evidence._  
 _\- No More Kings, "Grand Experiment"_

 **Episode 6**

Christopher Aonuma preferred to stay out of his room whenever possible. He was never one for adding aesthetic flair to his living space, so after two weeks it still felt like he was squatting with Ken. If there was one thing he hated more than anything, it was the feeling that he was relying on strangers. And Ken was still very much a stranger; Christopher had no interest in his roommate and Ken's efforts to befriend him fell silent quickly. Given their differing attitudes towards their respective megalomaniacal pasts, this was probably for the best.

He cursed having to return to his room to retrieve his forgotten Fusion Loader. It was an amateurish and downright Mikey-like mistake that disgusted Christopher. He didn't even have the patience to wait for the elevator, climbing the stairs to the third floor and barging in.

Ken was in there, but so was Rika, both of them reading. Ken was on his bed. Rika was sprawled out on Christopher's.

"What are you doing on my bed?" Christopher asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Oh, sorry," Ken said. "Hope you don't mind."

"I do, actually."

Rika smirked. "First time a girl's been in your bed, I take it?"

Christopher glared at her. "I just need to get my Fusion Loader." He found it on his nightstand and retrieved it. When he did, he shot another glare at Rika. "Your boyfriend and I will discuss this later."

Digging into his pillow further, Rika said, "You should see the blanket fort I'm going to make."

"Rika, you're not helping," Ken chided.

She scoffed. "I'm not here to help."

Christopher shook his head and muttered, "That's not what you told me in Hong Kong."

Rika narrowed her eyes, then sat up. Christopher was already out the door. "Wait... what's that supposed to mean?"

"Right..." Now it was Christopher's turn to smirk. "You guys don't remember all that, do you?"

She wasn't able to get another question in before he slammed the door behind him and walked away. Instead, she turned to Ken. "Hong Kong?" he asked.

"I've never been to Hong Kong." She shook her head repeatedly. "He's confusing me for someone else. Or he's making it up. Or something. I don't know. It obviously wasn't-"

"Rika?" She stopped. Ken was looking her in the eyes. "That's what Ryo keeps saying about me."

She stared at him for a while. Then she grumbled. "I have to tell him about this, don't I?"

"Yes. If Christopher says he remembers you from the real world-"

"Human world," she corrected.

He nodded. "Human world, then it's another example of our worlds crossing over. This is a pretty big deal."

* * *

Izzy Izumi was not only the officer for internal operations, he also led any and all research projects. Most of these were out of scientific curiosity, as most of the paths to actually better their situation had either been resolved or reached dead ends years ago. Yet here he had found something that actually had relevant value, and he was eager to follow up on it.

"So why are we down here?" Davis asked, looking around the Digimon habitat, wondering when Veemon would notice he was there.

Izzy set a folding chair on the ground and motioned for Davis to sit. "I prefer this environment for any research involving Digimon ability."

Davis wrinkled his nose. "Wait, then why did you say you needed my help?"

"Roll up your sleeve." Davis did so. Izzy nodded to Tentomon, who shot several jolts of electricity into Davis's bare arm. Davis screamed and went to clutch the injury, but Izzy grabbed his good arm. "Don't touch it. For this trial, I don't want any sort of treatment."

"How many times are you going to do this?!" Davis stared at his arm. It was smoking.

Izzy waved in Cutemon, who jumped on Davis's lap and started to heal the arm. Angie joined Izzy. "What's the point of this?" she asked.

"I'm analyzing Cutemon's healing abilities, and whether it actually repairs damage or just alleviates pain in humans. I want to see how it impacts the recovery process, since we aren't sending Mikey back out until he's fully healed."

Angie rolled her eyes. "Good luck telling him that."

Cutemon had reduced enough pain to calm Davis, but Davis was still seething. "Izzy, I didn't think you were the type that believed in experimenting on humans."

Izzy only smiled. "Davis, when you're involved, I'll believe in anything. Feel better?"

Davis shook his arm. "It's a bit tingly, but yeah. That helped a lot."

"Angie, twist his arm."

Angie looked at him, but shrugged and walked up to Davis. She clutched his arm with both hands and turned them in opposite directions.

"OW OW OW OW OW!"

"Prodigious," Izzy mumbled as he wrote something down in a notebook.

"That was not prodigious!" Davis screamed. "That was literally the opposite of prodigious!"

This time, Davis was denied treatment from Cutemon and his arm was left to recover naturally. While waiting, Angie heard a rustle in the bushes. She turned to it and said, "Hey! I thought I told you guys no sneaking up on me! Who is that?"

She walked up to the bushes and snooped around. She moved to brush a branch back to get a better look. Instead, she put her hands on a boy's face.

"Hello," said the boy. Angie screamed and stumbled backwards, falling on her rear.

"Hey, Keenan! Welcome back," Davis said, waving with his free hand.

Izzy looked up at the boy, who pushed aside the bushes and joined them. Keenan's black shirt and tan shorts had tears, his sandals were well worn and he was positively filthy. He was looking over Angie. "When did you get here?" Izzy asked.

"Now," Keenan said. "We have new people?"

"Yes, watch your grammar."

"Uh, Izzy, 'we have new people' is a complete sentence," Davis said.

Izzy narrowed his eyes at Davis. "Maybe by your standards."

Keenan extended a hand to Angie, still on the ground. "Hi, me Keenan."

"Keenan," Izzy scolded.

After shooting Izzy a scowl, Keenan turned back to Angie. "My name is Keenan. Nice meeting you."

Angie was still pretty confused, but she took his hand and he pulled her up. "Angie. Hi." She brushed the dirt off her shorts.

Keenan turned back to Izzy and pointed at her. "Hey, she does it."

"Does what?" She eyed him closely. Everything about his mannerisms and posture appeared off to her. She didn't want to try smelling him. "What's up with you?"

Izzy explained. "Angie, Keenan was pulled into the Digital World as a baby. He was raised by Digimon so some of his behavior is a little..."

While he fished for the word, Cutemon said, "A little what? I was raised by Digimon too."

Angie shook her head. "Yeah, that doesn't really explain anything."

Taking a deep breath, Izzy said, "You see, Digimon are connected to the world around them, which is filled with data, including cultural information such as language. Digimon are able to absorb this data through a sort of osmosis. That's how they can speak our language. As a human, Keenan isn't able to do that, so he only developed the bare minimum of communication skills he needed to survive in the world. It's been an uphill battle trying to get him to speak properly."

Keenan shrugged. "I know what I need. You understand me. Everything else filler."

"Kid's got a point," Davis said.

"Don't encourage him," Izzy replied. "Anyway, Keenan, you should get cleaned up. You know the rules here."

"Yeah, yeah," Keenan muttered, trudging out of the habitat.

Once he was gone, Izzy said, "He's the best we have at espionage and surveillance, so he's often out on his own for weeks at a time. He brings back tremendous information, but we have to guard against him regressing."

"Eh, I say let him be himself," said Davis. "He's a free spirit- does what he wants, says what he wants. Just does his thing. He reminds me of me."

Izzy nodded to Angie, who twisted Davis's arm again. After the screaming subsided, Izzy said, "Thanks again for helping out."

* * *

Ryo Akiyama didn't know what prompted it or what it was going to lead to, but for the moment he considered himself the luckiest guy in the world. When Mimi Tachikawa pulled him out of his usual patrol and begged him to come with her, asking for his help in "folding the laundry" in that suggestive tone of hers, of course he was going to follow. The laundry room was nice and secluded, and whatever was going to happen in there would be stuff of legend.

Or, perhaps, she actually wanted his help with the laundry. "Okay, I'll fold. You sort. It's so much easier with two people!" she said, any hint of flirtation gone from her voice. She set the giant basket on a table and went to work.

"Hmm... you meant that literally," he grumbled.

She smiled brightly. "Of course! What did you think I meant?"

Ryo rolled his eyes and took a sheet she had slid towards him. "Why did you want me? This isn't my job. Come to think of it, it's not yours either."

"Jeri's still on limited duty and Suzie's been reassigned, so Sora's pretty overwhelmed. I'm just chipping in when I can. Usually I trick Takuya into stuff like this, but he's helping with the Odaiba Day memorial."

"Lucky me," Ryo muttered.

Mimi smiled again. "Aw, do a good job and we can go on a date together."

He shook his head. "Feel like I've heard that one before."

They didn't get far before they had company. Rika barged in, dragging Nene with her. "What's going on in here?" Rika asked.

"Check it out, Rika, he's been domesticated!" Mimi exclaimed.

Ryo smirked. "Couldn't stand to see me running off with another girl, huh?"

Rika didn't bite. "Shut up. I need to talk to you."

"Aw, did you catch Ken fooling around with Davis?

Mimi's face lit up. "Did you?!" She slammed a pillowcase on the table. "Finally!"

"No!" Rika shouted. She gestured to Nene. "These guys say they know me from before."

"What?" Ryo's face steeled up. "What do you mean?"

Rika looked at Nene, who explained, "A few years ago we were battling an enemy called Quartzmon. Rika and Renamon helped us in Hong Kong. We should have said something."

"That's impossible," Ryo said, shaking his head. "Rika's been here all this time."

"It was definitely her. Oh, and another girl in some silly cowgirl outfit."

Mimi was aghast. "It wasn't silly!" She scoffed. "That look was all the rage... back in the nineties."

Nene narrowed her eyes. "Even the gaudy hat?"

"Especially the hat." Mimi looked away, but then turned back and said, "Wait, how could I have still had the hat? I lost it the first time we left the Digital World."

"Don't worry, Nene," Ryo said. "It's not the first time someone thought they knew one of us. Ken thinks I helped him out before his whole emperor kick. Totally impossible. First time I heard of Digimon was through the card game. Now who'd I beat in that tournament again?"

While Rika stewed, Nene said, "I know who I saw. Christopher can back me up."

"All I know is that there's no way Rika and Mimi would be able to fight together without being at each other's throats."

Rika pointed at Ryo angrily, but paused. "Actually, that's probably true."

"Yeah, we would be oil and water," Mimi observed. "Especially if it was our younger selves."

"Well, whatever." Ryo shook his head. "Nene... Mimi... Ri-ri... have fun chasing your mystery. I've got laundry to do."

"You're not interested in this?" Rika asked.

"Nah. Not if Izzy's gonna run into the same dead ends he did with Ken's story. It's not like you've got anything else to back it up."

"Well, actually..." Nene squirmed. "There was another incident around the same time in Japan. We ran into a few more of you."

"Unless it was Tai, Command probably won't care."

"It was Tai." Ryo, Mimi and Rika all turned to Nene. "...and Marcus ...and Davis ...and Takato and Takuya." She scratched her head, smiling awkwardly. "Mikey probably should have mentioned this before, huh?"

* * *

Shoutmon tended to sneak into the main building of the castle more often than most Digimon. He rarely did anything, but as he had never found time to build a castle for himself, he enjoyed this one as if it was his. After all, nobody had ever told him he _wasn't_ still king of the Digital World, so he assumed he still was, merely one that took a backseat to the local authority.

He was glad he dropped in today. The main hall was filled with decorations and framed pictures lined as much of the stage as it could support. It hadn't been completely repaired since the Etemon fight, as some materials still had to be shipped, but whatever pictures couldn't fit on the stage were placed on the floor in front of it. Shoutmon recognized some of the Digimon in them. On the floor he found one of himself.

"Well, hey there good looking!" He admired his own portrait. Shoutmon had no idea where they got this picture. It was from his younger days, before age and battle had pocked his face. He didn't remember being so handsome.

"Is that a good picture of you?" Kari asked.

"This is a great picture!" Shoutmon smiled at her. "Can I keep it?"

"I'm glad. We had to scramble a bit to make sure it was ready for this week."

He looked at it again, trying to mimic his pose in it. "Not that you need a reason to put me on display, but what's the occasion?"

"Odaiba Day is a time when we commemorate all the Digimon who sacrificed their lives for us."

Shoutmon stared back at her, then took another look at the picture as he realized the exact reason it was there. He backed away from it and cried, "Ew! Ew ew ew! What kind of sick, twisted person are you?!" He shuddered at the thought of his own mortality and stormed off. "Jeez, I need a shower."

He didn't even acknowledge Mikey as he walked by. Mikey watched him go, then approached Kari. "What's up with him?"

She chuckled. "He didn't realize this was a memorial for Digimon who died. Guess he didn't like the reminder. You should have seen Biyomon's reaction when one from Marcus's group ended up here." She looked at the pictures again and grimaced. "I'd better warn Lopmon and Suzie."

"Oh yeah." He looked over the wall. "It's really cool that you do all this though."

Kari looked down. "Thanks. It... means a lot to me."

Mikey tried pacing around the display, slowed by the crutches Joe still made him use. While he sought out all of his allies, he was humbled by the number of pictures. Every single one was no doubt a devastating tragedy for somebody. He found one picture, of several Numemon in a typically goofy pose, utterly ridiculous, yet couldn't laugh. It had to be up there for a reason.

"Everybody wonders about that one," Kari said. She shook her head. "They have no idea."

After covering the entire display, Mikey frowned and turned to Kari. "Where's Damemon?"

She sighed, keeping her eyes away from him. "Oh, from what we heard, that happened while he was still working for the enemy, so we didn't put him up."

"Oh, no no, he should be up there. Broke Ewan's heart when he went down."

"Still, he spent all that time convincing Ewan that-"

"C'mon, Kari, don't be like that." Mikey shook his head, grinning in disbelief. "You don't understand what was going on."

"I-"

He ignored her. "Damemon thought he was protecting Ewan. What more can you ask from him?"

Head lowered, Kari said, "I don't think we even have materials for another one."

"Well, you better see what you can do. Because what's the point of having a memorial if you're going to forget someone?"

She forced herself to look up at him. Her hands started shaking. He stared back, judging her with a smile that was both charming and disparaging. She lowered her eyes and mumbled, "I'll see what I can do."

He rubbed the top of her head and said, "Attagirl."

Her D-Terminal buzzed and she checked it, happy to have a distraction. She frowned at the message, but faked a smile and looked up at Mikey. "What a coincidence. Command wants to talk to you upstairs."

"Oh, cool. Maybe they'll let me back out there early," he said. He used his crutches to hobble to the elevator.

Kari followed him. Her instructions were to "bring" Mikey upstairs, not send him. Really, after that conversation she wanted to be nowhere near him. His slowed pace made it even worse, and naturally it took forever for the elevator to arrive. When it did, she stood in the corner and didn't make eye contact. She could feel his eyes on her though.

The elevator stopped on the third floor. She smiled, relieved to see Ken. "Going down?" he asked.

"Nope," said Mikey.

"Okay, I'll wait." Kari's shoulders slumped.

Once they arrived, Zoe was at Kari's station. Nobody else was at theirs. "They're all in the meeting room," Zoe said.

"Me too?" Kari asked

"Yep. I'm holding down the fort."

Kari again followed Mikey, again annoyed that he couldn't walk at full speed. Inside the meeting room, she sat well away from him, finding a seat next to Davis. Mikey sat at the end of the table next to Nene. It was the first time Kari noticed her there. Tai, Izzy and Thomas were also there, Tai at the other end of the table.

"What's wrong?" Davis asked her. Kari hadn't realized she was so visibly uncomfortable.

She started to reply, "Oh, it's... Davis, what happened to your arm?" His right arm was covered in black welts. She couldn't help but be concerned.

"Izzy happened to my arm," he responded.

On the other end, Mikey leaned in and said to Nene, "What's all this about?"

"Christopher told Rika about Hong Kong," Nene said. "It's time to get this over with." Mikey gulped.

Izzy stood up, cleared his throat and said, "Mikey, it's our understanding that you and your friends believe you encountered several of us a few years before you arrived here. Is that correct?"

Mikey sighed. He already knew this was going to be painful. "Yeah. It was something like four years ago when we were fighting Quartzmon. A bunch of you, uh, helped."

Both Izzy and Thomas wrote something down on notepads. "Who all was that?"

"Uh, Marcus and Tai. And then Davis and Takato and Takuya joined them later. There might have been a couple others." Tai stared back at Mikey, eyes narrowed. Kari looked at him, then at Davis, who just shrugged at her.

"And Christopher and I got help from Rika and Mimi in Hong Kong," Nene added.

"Why didn't you tell us before?" Tai asked.

"Well, I brought it up with Takuya when we first got here. He thought I was nuts," Mikey said.

Nene nodded. "Rika was quite skeptical as well. Why bring it up if we aren't going to be taken seriously?"

"Because it's a massive dimensional anomaly," Thomas said. "Assuming it actually happened, the only bigger one is the one we're currently in."

"Assuming it actually happened? It happened. We were all there." Mikey shook his head. "This is what Nene's talking about."

Kari grumbled quietly and turned away. Izzy held up a hand. "We're sorry. We just can't take anything for granted. We still can't verify that Ken actually had an adventure with Ryo, or if he did if it was the same Ryo living here."

"What, you think there could be two of them?"

Izzy nodded. "We have evidence that multiple versions of ourselves can be in different worlds at the same time. It's hard to decipher which one can be considered real, especially since it appears to be possible that a world is real for one person and not for another."

"Like it was real for us but not you all?" Nene asked.

"Precisely." Izzy held up a finger, then pointed at Davis and Kari. "If you were to guess, how old would you say Davis and Kari are?"

"Kari is 14," Nene said. "Davis... 17 or 18?"

"They were in the same class." Mikey and Nene looked at them again, faces contorting as they failed to imagine how they could be the same age.

"No jokes about me being held back, okay?" Davis said.

Izzy explained: "Since we don't age in the Digital World, we are physically the same age as when we arrived. The one commonality about when we were all pulled in here is that it was around the six-year anniversary of each group's decisive victory in the Digital World. For example, Tai, Kari and I were pulled here around the sixth anniversary of Odaiba Day. But even though Davis is from our world back home, he, Ken, Yolei and Cody were not part of our original group. Their fight came a few years later, therefore they arrived a few years after us."

Mikey turned to Davis. "So what, they just disappeared or something?"

Davis smiled. "Nope! Still saw plenty of 'em. Hell, they had a..." He stopped himself and snickered. "Never mind... spoilers."

Izzy pointed at Davis and nodded. "In that span, multiple versions of us existed simultaneously."

"Think it's possible that once we get out of here we'll be zapped back to when we left?" Mikey asked.

Thomas shook his head. "Unlikely. The timing of everyone's arrival makes it clear that time has not stopped or slowed here. Furthermore, we have no assurance that we ever will get out of here."

"That's why we need to know everything we can about what you dealt with," Izzy said. "Understanding these anomalies may prove crucial to finding a way out."

"But even if we did, we would not be the same people. Remember, not only did Davis not notice anyone missing, their personalities had not changed. Living here for this long inevitably has a psychological impact. And that's if we're all able to return intact- another uncertainty."

Davis nodded, head lowered. "You're talking about TK, right?" His head jolted up and he looked around. Everybody was staring back except Kari, whose eyes were fixed on the table. "Oh, shoot, did we want them knowing about TK?"

"It's all right," said Tai. He turned to Mikey. "I don't know if you heard by now, but we lost two of our friends and their partners. You see, when we first got here, the world was a lot more dangerous, and-"

"Tai, please," Kari blurted, a hand held out to him. She shook her head. "Not now. Some other time."

"Are you okay?"

She shot Mikey a quick look, but turned back, still shaking her head. "I'm fine. I've just been doing a lot of work on the memorial and it's in my head a bit. I don't need to hear about TK and Matt now too. In fact, if you don't need me for anything-"

Thomas grimaced. "Sorry, but it would be best if we all knew about the details of the Quartzmon anomaly."

Mikey held up a hand. Slightly timid, he said, "Um, if you don't mind me asking, why aren't these two part of the memorial?"

"Well..." Tai glanced at Kari. "...sparing the details, we can't confirm that they're actually dead. Believe me, if we knew for sure, we'd have named the towers after them."

"Right now the evidence suggests that they're alive," Izzy said. "Which is even more troubling, since we haven't found any traces of them, nor have we received any contact. It's hard to envision many scenarios where their situation is anything other than... unpleasant."

"Once you take care of Petaldramon, our intention was to have your team continue looking for them," Thomas said. "Marcus's team has been too busy with their regular patrol to make much progress."

Nene turned to her teammate. "Mikey, you don't think Petaldramon could have been talking about them, do you?"

"Hey, yeah!" Mikey said. "What did he say? Something about us joining our friends?"

Thomas pointed at Mikey and nodded. "It crossed our minds when you mentioned that at your debriefing. It's certainly something to look into when you're ready to go back out."

"Oh. I thought you would be more excited."

Tai sighed. "We've been through this enough times to get our hopes up. But definitely look into it anyway. If there's a chance, we have to try."

"Still, we're getting off topic," Izzy said. "Back to Quartzmon. We need to know everything."

Mikey and Nene couldn't even remember everything, but they did the best they could against the onslaught of questions Izzy and Thomas threw at them. It ended up being as painful as Mikey had anticipated. They asked things he hadn't even registered at the time, like which specific Digimon were present or who took down what (all swore never to give Marcus the satisfaction of knowing he had allegedly punched out three VenomMyotismon). At one point Izzy even asked what color everyone's digivices were. He and Thomas wrote down everything.

After trying to break down who had pulled them into this world and how, the impossibility of the same pair of goggles being on Tai and Davis's heads simultaneously, and the very nature of Quartzmon itself, Izzy tried to fill in the blanks of Nene's encounter with Rika and Mimi. He and Thomas had been far less interested in it, but it was still important to have details.

"Mimi's right, she did lose that hat," Izzy said. "That may not be significant, however." He looked something up on his tablet and asked, "And Rika was wearing a white shirt with a heart on it?"

Nene thought for a moment, then nodded. Izzy wrote it down, then continued, "How did their Digimon fight? Did they bio-merge or-"

"Broken heart or full heart?" Davis blurted.

Izzy shot Davis an annoyed look, but Nene answered, "Broken."

"Of course it was. Why do you ask?" Izzy said.

Davis shrugged. "Ken told me about her getting one with a full heart from her mom before fighting E-Reaper or whatever it was. Guess deep down, she's a softie. I was just curious."

Thomas narrowed his eyes. "Did you say she wore a different shirt when they beat D-Reaper?"

"Oh, _D_ -Reaper! Yeah, yeah, that's what I heard."

Izzy's mouth fell open. "That's... actually... relevant," he mumbled. He scribbled some notes, "Prodigious."

"I wouldn't consider that prodigious, Izzy," Thomas said.

Davis scoffed. "Don't sweat it, Norstein, he's been saying it so long he probably forgot what it means."

Thomas looked at Izzy and frowned. "Either way, if you were also suspecting that they were summoned at point zero, this works against that."

"Point zero?" said Mikey.

"It's the moment when we saved the world for good," Tai explained, glancing aside. "Well, maybe not 'for good' but enough to go back home and get back to normal life."

Izzy turned to Thomas. "I was, and yes, it's evidence against that, but I would rather have it now than learn it after developing a hypothesis."

There would be no hypothesis developed yet, only more questions that Mikey and Nene struggled to answer. Izzy and Thomas filled several pages worth of information before declaring the interrogation over. Mikey, Nene and even Kari slumped over in exhaustion.

Davis shook his head and stood up. He patted Kari on the back and said, "Sorry about bringing up TK." She nodded and he walked away.

Tai caught Izzy as they walked out. "Please say you got something useful out of that."

Izzy only shrugged. "I have no idea. But it's all very fascinating, don't you think?" Tai only rolled his eyes.

Nene and Mikey followed. While Nene went straight out, Mikey stopped and looked at Kari. "Just uh... don't forget about Damemon, okay?" Kari winced. All that and there was no sign of her day getting any better.

* * *

Sora Takenouchi was already behind schedule. Having to visit the sixth floor of Ophani Tower for the second time in the day made it even worse. Tommy had been in there the first time and preferred that she come back later to change the sheets and gather laundry. She didn't want to run afoul of someone with the power to mess with her food.

She knocked on the door. "Tommy, are you still in there?" she asked, praying for silence.

"No," came the reply from within. Sora frowned; it was a typically cheeky response from a typically cheeky teenage boy.

"Can I come in?"

"Yes."

She unlocked and opened the door, pulling a large cart behind her. "Sorry to barge in, but I'm way behind today. I'm not missing the ceremo-" That's when she saw that Tommy was not actually in the room. Keenan was.

Keenan was also stark naked.

"No problem. My clothes over there," Keenan said, pointing to a tiny pile of messy and wrinkled shirts and shorts in the corner of the room.

Sora's face reddened and she froze in place. "K... Keenan..."

He frowned. "Sorry... my clothes _are_ over there." He shook his head, annoyed.

She looked away from him. "You said I could come in!"

"You can."

"You're naked!"

"I took a shower upstairs."

Sora refused to look anywhere but the wall. "There's a place to change up there."

"Takes too long to get dry. They said I can't run around all wet."

She forced herself to move forward. Naked boy or not, she was still behind and there was no way she could find time for a third trip. She hoped she could somehow position her cart between herself and Keenan. Despite knocking over a pile of books, the maneuver was successful. She could still see his face and chest, but everything else was thankfully obstructed.

"You look embarrassed." he said, rubbing a towel through his hair.

Sora turned her back to him and pulled the pillowcases from the pillows atop Tommy's bed. "Well, someone here has to be."

"Why?"

"It's just... not appropriate." Sora ripped the sheets off. "If you were any older I'd file a complaint with Command."

"I'm same age as Izzy!" Sora shuddered. " _The_ same age! I'm _the_ same age as Izzy!"

"That's fine!" After dumping a bag of Tommy's clothes in the cart, she carefully wheeled it over to Keenan's side. "Say it however you want... just stop saying it."

As Keenan hadn't actually been around to use his bed, all she needed to get was his dirty clothes. She held her breath and gathered them into a bag. Sora dropped them into the cart, buried her head, and said, "Okay, that's all I need. I'll let you... uh... get dressed."

She stared at the cart, and nothing else, and pushed it towards the exit. It gave her the perfect view as Keenan dove into it. She slammed her eyes closed and waited.

"What are you doing and tell me when you're finished!" she cried.

"Done!" She opened her eyes. He was standing in front of her, holding one set of his dirty clothes. They were wrinkled and stained and unfortunately not covering the part of his body she wanted to avoid.

He laughed. "Guess I need something to wear today, huh?"

She plowed the cart forward and out the door instead of responding.

* * *

Kari Kamiya was already unhappy about the concept of Damemon in the memorial. The actual process of putting him in hurt even more. The first part, printing the picture, wasn't troublesome as they did that all the time for operational purposes. It was the decorative aspect she dreaded.

It was only due to luck (good or bad, she couldn't decide) that they even had a frame left over. Usually she requested the exact amount, never wanting to consider a death an inevitable occurrence. She had even held out hope that the new arrivals had somehow gotten through their adventure unscathed. Unfortunately, either the river sent an overage or Jeri ordered extras in a fit of nihilism.

Kari carried the necessary materials into the meeting room. Izzy was inside, trying to work out possible theories on the Quartzmon anomaly. Originally, the room had a dry erase board. That proved to be insufficient for Izzy, who converted two full walls into a writable surface. Most of the walls were now covered with charts, equations and scattered thoughts.

"Do you mind if I work on something in here?" Kari asked.

She heard him mumble, "If this digiquartz truly was a time shift, then the year is irrelevant. They could have been drawn to any future point." She took that as a yes and sat down opposite him, doubting he knew she was there. Kari hadn't been at all interested in the Quartzmon anomaly, and still wasn't sure why Thomas had insisted she be in that meeting. She didn't think it would pose much of a distraction until she actually started working.

Whenever Kari had put these together, her thoughts never failed to turn to the sacrifice being honored. It kept her motivated, and made sure that the tribute would be done right. She spent far too long staring at Damemon's picture. Even to his death, his goal had been deception for the sake of the enemy. And here she was, about to place him alongside the likes of Wizardmon. She found herself unable to move.

"This will be a new point zero for all the hunters, won't it?" Izzy said to himself. "I wonder who all will arrive here at the six year point. It couldn't be all of them... could it?"

Kari had so little motivation that she suddenly found Izzy's mumbling rants and barely legible writing far more interesting. She had to admit it was a perplexing turn of events, which had to be why Izzy had thrown himself into it so obsessively. It was hard to say he was making any sort of progress, but in an odd way he seemed at peace, totally in his element with his mind trying to process a million things at once.

After writing down names of the prominent hunters Mikey had mentioned, Izzy stared at what he had just written. "Although... entering the Digital World seems to be one of the requirements to coming here. If digiquartz isn't actually the Digital World, then they may not show up after all. But if it is..." He raised an eyebrow, a smile creeping on his face. "...I guess we'll learn something important either way."

He turned around and looked right over Kari's head, scratching his chin. "Now what about these goggles..." Only then did he notice Kari. Izzy straightened his posture and dropped his smile. "Kari!" he squeaked. "How long have you been in here?"

His reaction amused her enough for a giggle to escape. "A few minutes." She made the mistake of looking down and saw her project. More glum, she added, "Working on something myself right now."

Izzy grimaced. "Sorry. I kind of go into a zone when I'm working on stuff like this, but you have to admit it's an amazing puzzle." He started to turn back around, but stopped himself, noticing what was on the table in front of Kari. "Another one? I thought you finished all the new ones."

She sighed. "I thought so too."

He walked over and saw the picture of Damemon. Kari had only gotten halfway through cutting it to fit the frame. "I thought we weren't including Damemon. We discussed this with Tai."

Shoulders slumping, she said, "I thought so too." He put a hand on her shoulder. Kari turned her chair towards him. "Mikey thought otherwise."

"I'm sure he'd understand our position if we explained it to him."

"I tried." She leaned forward. "He was very insistent."

With his free hand, Izzy lifted her chin. "Are you really all right with this?" She stared back at him. A tear fell and she shook her head. He pulled her into a hug.

"He's not letting this go. I just..." She closed her eyes.

As he embraced her, gently rubbing her back, his eyes closed as well. He took a deep breath through his nose, a faint smile forming on his face. Izzy opened his eyes again and saw out the window to the main command center. Tai stared back, looking concerned. He moved for the door. Izzy pulled himself away from Kari and stepped back as Tai entered.

Tai looked at Izzy first. Izzy's hands clutched his sides and he stood upright, staring at anything but Kari. Tai raised an eyebrow, eyes darting between Izzy and Kari, who still looked miserable. Tai smirked. "Izzy, you're adorable." He walked up to Kari and patted her back. "What's wrong, Kari?" She didn't budge.

"Tai, we may need to have a word with Mikey," Izzy said, frowning.

* * *

Outside, Zoe and Thomas were at their stations. Zoe struggled to resist smirking as she watched Tai and Izzy attempt to console Kari. As she did, Davis stepped out of the elevator.

"Did I miss anything fun?" he asked.

She pointed to the meeting room. "Tai and Izzy are doting over Kari. If you hurry, you can still get in on it."

"Sweet, I'm there!" Davis said, hurriedly joining them.

Zoe rolled her eyes and turned back to her station. "These guys..."

"You're an only child, aren't you?" Thomas asked.

"Come on, all three of them?" Zoe glanced back at the door. "Is she really that fragile? They don't give anyone else that kind of attention."

"I'm sure they would if called upon. I assure you that if they weren't around, I'd be there for her too. Or for you, for that matter."

Zoe raised an eyebrow and slapped him on the arm. "Ooh, am I supposed to read into that?"

"No." He kept a straight face. "And please don't insinuate anything. You're going to turn into Miki and Megumi."

She leaned in and said, "Uh, you know all the girls here have crushes on you, right?"

Thomas frowned. "Hmm... present company included?"

He glanced at her. She blushed, then leaned into the monitoring system. "Of course not! We're the professional ones here!"

She waited a moment before looking at Thomas. Now he was staring at the meeting room. She shook her head. "Per carità..."

Without turning back, Thomas said, "I do speak Italian, you know."

* * *

Cody Hida swung his kendo stick forward for the fifteenth time, still not satisfied with his technique. He had practiced every day he didn't have to respond to anything, but now that he had a reason to, he suddenly didn't feel as sharp. He had heard that both Jeremy and Mikey were strong at kendo, and word would inevitably get out to them that Cody was as well. Cody imagined the scenario: Jeremy mentions his expertise, Yolei or Davis talks up Cody's game, and Jeremy hunts down his newest rival with a boisterous shout of "I challenge you, Cody Hida!" Cody wanted to be prepared for that.

"Think it may be time for a break? It looks like it might rain," Armadillomon said. It wasn't about to rain. The weather was usually very stable, save for the infrequent blizzard or torrential downpour. Light showers or flurries never happened; the Digital World never half-assed its weather effects. As a result, any precipitation could be anticipated days in advance. Nothing was in the forecast.

"Just a bit more," Cody said. Armadillomon continued to sit and watch, bored out of his mind.

"Pardon me." Tommy wasn't actually in their way, just announcing his presence as he walked by them to reach the garden at the foot of Ophani Tower.

"What's on the menu?" Cody asked.

"Just getting some basil." Tommy loved having the community garden- easy access to fresh fruits, vegetables and spices for the kitchen's free use. It was also one more hobby for anybody interested in tending it. Tommy wasn't, but he had no problem harvesting the hard work of other people.

Tommy gathered a few basil leaves without a problem. The problem was elsewhere in the garden. Vines were bent, branches were snapped, several leaves had bite marks and there was a big hole in the middle of a bed of lettuce. Tommy may not have been responsible for tending the garden, but as its main beneficiary he felt the need to root out the culprit.

He didn't have to go far. "Armadillomon!" he shouted. "I told you to stop digging in the garden!"

Cody frowned. "Armadillomon, again?" He walked up to his partner, shaking his head. "If you're bored watching me train, you don't have to stay here. I can get you after I'm done."

"But I didn't do it!" Armadillomon pleaded. "I haven't been in the garden... lately."

Tommy wasn't having it, turning to Cody instead. "Are Digimon really this hard to control?"

"It's not as easy as you think," Cody said. "I'm sure it's a piece of cake when you just turn into one."

"Well, Beast Spirits are actually..." Tommy caught the change of subject and steered back on course. "Anyway, we need to do something about this."

Cody folded his arms and nodded. Armadillomon looked up at both of them. "I told you I'm innocent! Don't I get a lawyer?"

"No lawyers here, Armadillomon," said Cody. "Who else would be digging through there?"

"Well, how about him?" Armadillomon pointed at Keenan, leaning against the side of the tower, eating a tomato. His hands were covered in dirt. Tommy ran up to him. Cody and Armadillomon followed; they were part of this now.

"Where'd you get that?" Tommy asked.

Keenan motioned to the garden. "I was hungry."

"There's food in the kitchen! You can't just dig through the garden."

"It's faster."

Cody winced as Keenan took another bite. "That can't be healthy," he muttered. Not only were both of Keenan's hands dirty, Cody never like tomatoes to begin with.

"I brushed it off." Keenan turned back to Tommy. "But I really wanted a... what's name... BLT."

"Bacon doesn't come from a garden!" Tommy shouted.

"There's other B foods. Beets come from gardens."

"Not this one!"

Keenan scoffed. "Now you tell me." He shook his head and walked away.

Cody and Tommy just stared at him. "That is one weird kid," Cody said.

"Try rooming with him," Tommy replied.

As Armadillomon fetched, and received, his apology from Cody, Tommy started to think aloud. "Hmm... a BLT with beets... how could I make that work?"

Cody held his kendo stick over Tommy's head. "Don't you dare try it."

* * *

Davis Motomiya had already been downstairs, so retrieving Mikey for the second time in the day was easy for him. Especially if it meant Kari didn't have to do it.

Riding the elevator up, Mikey asked, "What more do you guys need to know about all this?"

"Oh, this ain't about that," Davis replied.

"Okay, so what's it about then?"

Davis didn't answer. The elevator doors opened and they stepped out. Tai had a stern look on his face and pointed to the meeting room. Davis joined Izzy, Thomas and Kari at the row of workstations, resuming his duties as Tai followed Mikey into the room.

At least Davis pretended to resume his duties. As soon as Tai closed the door behind him, Davis pushed off his station and wheeled his chair next to the door. It would have been far more graceful had the floor not been carpeted.

Izzy raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

Davis put an ear to the door. "You seriously don't want to hear this?" Izzy shook his head and returned to his work.

Kari, on the other hand, took her headphones off, tiptoed to Davis and sat on his lap. Davis looked at Izzy and shrugged. "You had your chance."

Inside, Tai folded his hands on the table. "So... look, you seem to be a pretty cool guy. And I get that you're new and might not know the history behind Odaiba Day and why we do all this."

"What?" Mikey replied, immediately thrown off. "No way, this is really cool. The Digimon are really the ones sticking their necks out. I'm all for remembering everyone we lost."

Tai, too, was thrown off. The explanation and history lesson was the easy part that was supposed to settle his nerves. Now he had to get to the point. "Then I guess you should understand that we're pretty serious about deciding who to honor."

Mikey nodded, grinning. "Sure, sure. I was just telling Kari that Damemon deserves it."

"And we're saying he doesn't."

Tai waited for Mikey's reaction, frowning when there wasn't one. His fellow goggle boy kept on smiling. "Hey, I know it sounds bad, but that guy did so much for Ewan," said Mikey.

Looking away, Tai said, "It's... not about what he did for Ewan." He looked back, suddenly more confident. "Everyone's partners do a lot for us. That's not the point of the memorial. We're remembering the ones that died helping us. Damemon was working against you."

"Not by choice. He was being manipulated as much as Ewan."

Tai sighed. "Look, we have to deal with manipulated and corrupted Digimon all the time. It sucks whenever we have to put one down, but do you really think they should be honored?"

"Why not? It's a shame that anyone has to die."

"Would you want Bagramon put up there?"

Mikey shook his head, but his grin didn't budge. "Look, I know what you're saying, but I'm not letting this go. Damemon's a Fusion Fighter. It's nice that you're honoring Shoutmon and the others but if you leave one off, you're disrespecting the whole team."

"I'm sorry, but Kari and Izzy and I talked about this for a long time and we all came to an agreement. And I'm not going to let you bully Kari into-"

"Bully?" _That_ took care of his grin. "You think I'm bullying Kari?"

"It sounded like you were pressuring her into this. Your tone really bothered her."

"Well, this is very important to me." Mikey learned forward, eyes steeled on Tai. "But I would never bully anybody, or threaten them, or do anything that would hurt someone." He leaned back, but his eyes remained focused. "I can't believe you'd say that."

Tai held up a hand. "Okay, but Kari really doesn't want to do this, and she feels like you're forcing her."

"Isn't that part of being in charge?" Mikey said, louder. "She should be able to handle me telling her she's wrong. And besides, why is it only her and you and Izzy deciding all this for us?"

"It's... it's Odaiba Day," Tai answered, his voice raising. "We started this whole thing, back before we even got here. Before we even knew there were other digidestined. You can't tell us how to honor-"

A knock on the door interrupted. Tai grumbled. "What is it?!" His voice was almost at a yell.

Davis cracked the door open. "Uh, you guys are getting a little loud in here. We should, uh..." He held up a fist, thumb pointed to the elevator. "We should all go for a walk. Cool down a bit."

"Davis, we're dealing with this," Tai said forcefully. "I hate that we're arguing about it, but we're getting it resolved before tonight."

"Yeah, I'd rather not make all this a thing." Davis pointed to the elevator again. "Come on. As lieutenant commander, I insist."

Tai's eyes widened, staring back at Davis in shock. Even Kari, standing next to Davis, was taken aback. "Davis..." she mumbled.

It was a code phrase, and part of Davis's only unique job as second-in-command. He used it very rarely, and only when he was certain of it. It was a professional and courteous, yet firm, way of saying "Tai, you need to stop."

Tai sat up quickly and walked to the door, passing Mikey. "Okay, let's go," he said.

"All of us?" Kari asked.

"Yep," said Davis, entering the elevator as soon as it arrived. Once Kari and Tai boarded, Davis held the door open to give time for Mikey to hobble in.

As they descended, Tai said, "Davis, you get where we're coming from, don't you?"

Davis looked up at the wall. "You know what's funny? That first Odaiba Day after me and Yolei and Cody got our digivices."

"What was funny about that?" Kari asked, offended.

"You almost didn't invite us."

The elevator landed and the four stepped out. Davis led the way. "First time we heard about it, you and TK were just talking about having other plans that day. It took a sec for you to think to let us be part of it. Us new kids were afterthoughts."

He led them to the memorial itself, where he stopped and watched it from a distance. A couple people were passing through, some stopping to acknowledge it. Tai and Kari joined him, as did Mikey when he caught up. "What's this about?" Tai asked.

Davis only pointed at Keenan, sitting in front of the pictures of Frigimon and Merukimon. He barely moved and kept his head down. They couldn't be sure whether he was deep in thought or lost in meditation, but they knew that either way he was remembering those he still considered his mother and father. Jeri passed by, putting a hand on his shoulder. Keenan acknowledged her with a slight nod.

"You guys gotta stop thinking this day is still yours," Davis said. "It doesn't matter who came up with it. It doesn't matter what it's called. We all need it. You can't just act like it's yours to share. It belongs to all of us now."

Tai and Kari kept staring at Jeri and Keenan. Jeri stood up and faced Leomon. Despite there being two nearly identical pictures, she always somehow knew which one represented hers. She kissed her hand and planted it on his frame before moving on. A second picture caught her attention, however, and she stopped to plant a kiss on that one as well. Mikey looked at his Fusion Loader when he realized it was for Beelzemon.

Mikey eyed Tai and Kari, deliberating for a moment before asking Davis, "So you think Damemon should go up then?"

Davis didn't look at Mikey. He only smiled and said, "Nope."

Abandoning the solemn moment, Mikey cried, "Wait, what?! What was all that about then? Why not?"

"Because it's no good," said Damemon from behind. Mikey froze for a moment before slowly turning around. Ewan was with his partner, frowning with his hands on his hips.

Damemon stepped forward, frowning. "I don't want to be up there. I don't care if I was trying to protect Ewan. I don't care that I was being controlled. Everybody that's being remembered should be able to say they're proud of what they've done." He shook his head. "I'm ashamed of it. I wasn't sure if I even wanted to come back to Ewan. Trying to remember that me? No good."

Davis looked at Mikey, Tai and Kari. "Yeah, it's weird how none of you guys bothered to ask Damemon what he thinks. I mean, they're Digimon. It's not like they don't come back." He quickly looked back in case Jeri was still there. "...most of the time," he added.

Ewan walked up to Mikey, a disappointed look on his face. "Mikey, I appreciate you always going to bat for us, but I can't believe you'd pick a fight without even talking to us first. You don't know how we feel. What we did to you guys was terrible. Don't try to find something noble in it."

"I..." Mikey stopped. He had nothing, and could only look down. "I'm sorry."

Davis folded his arms. "We good?"

All he got were sad nods from Mikey, Tai and Kari, a far cry from the joyful reconciliation he had hoped for.

"Mikey, uh... keep us posted on how the leg's doing. We want to get you back out there as soon as you're better," said Tai.

"Yessir," mumbled Mikey, limping past Ewan while avoiding eye contact. Tai and Kari headed in the other direction, back to the elevator. Neither spoke.

While they trudged back to their corners, Ewan approached Davis. "Thanks for telling me what was going on. And sorry about Mikey. He can get like that sometimes. Hope there's no hard feelings."

Davis stretched his arms. "Don't sweat it. And don't worry about Tai and Kari. They're probably stewing 'cause they made me look like the sensible one. They hate when that happens."

Ewan shook his head. "I don't think they get what it's like to have been on the other side once. I caused them so much pain. I don't want to remember any of that."

"Don't sweat it. I hear you." Davis patted Ewan on the shoulder. "Dealing with recovering bad guys? That's right in my wheelhouse!"

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 7: "Whistle For The Choir"**  
A friendly challenge has JP hitting on Nene while Jeremy asks out Zoe. Kari's failure to act on a complaint draws criticism. The Fusion Fighters give their mission another try and find a potential lead to Matt and TK's disappearance.

" _It's a shame you don't have your own Digimon partner, because you could really use one right now."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** Somewhere around season five, the term "real world" evolved into "human world" and that distinction is reflected here as a more politically correct term. Not that some of the characters don't have trouble getting used to it.

The idea of Digimon learning language through osmosis is my actual headcanon to explain Keenan's speech patterns. This was as good a place as any to put it to use, because you know Izzy would have studied it to death upon meeting Keenan.

It's a strange sort of story where there's uncertainty whether or not the Wonderswan games actually happened at the same time we're dropping a D-1 Tamers reference (in the game, Mimi asks Ryo on a date) just to be cute.

This episode reflects a darker side of Mikey's character that is far more apparent in the dub. There, he's a bit more arrogant and a bit more forceful, making it a perfect conflict when he has a disagreement with Kari over something as important to her as Odaiba Day.

Yes, Davis's allusion to "spoilers" was a deliberate refrence to tri.

Tommy and Keenan have the same voice actress (and we all wish her the best!), hence Sora's confusion. And yes, Keenan is at least ten years old, making him the same age as Izzy.

In today's Italian lesson, "per carità" is an expression that roughly means an exasperated "for heaven's sake."

FjaAuHGv8CM  
B000U7ZX00


	8. 07- Whistle For The Choir

**Author's Note**  
We're back! Sorry for the delay, but it's worth it to be able to post regularly. We're back to new episodes every two weeks until the midway point in the story- episode 13. Since the only thing System Restore will have to review after that is the second tri. movie, the next break should not be as long. Having said that, a few notes regarding how tri. fits in- tri. is meant to be canon. So far, the portrayal of the older Adventure kids jives nicely with this story, and nothing I've heard so far suggests that it will contradict events in the story. We may have to roll with developments on a couple of characterization issues but so far, so good!

 **Neverworld**

 _So if you're lonely, why'd you say you're not lonely?_  
 _Oh you're a silly girl. I know, I heard it so._  
 _It's just like you to come and go_  
 _and know me. No, you don't even know me._  
 _You're so sweet to try. Oh my, you caught my eye._  
 _A girl like you's just irresistible._  
 _\- The Fratellis, "Whistle For The Choir"_

 **Episode 7**

Jeremy Tsurgi thought it was annoying how long it took to get the materials to repair the stage. Then he learned that rather than simply replacing the damaged pallets, Command had decided to take the opportunity to rebuild it from scratch. Izzy and JP had developed a blueprint for a proper platform, with space underneath for equipment storage and electrical wiring. It was far more permanent and far more impressive than the last stage, but it required a ton of work at a time when JP and Jeremy already had plenty to do.

Thankfully, some of the other residents were less busy. "You're gonna owe me a big one, JP," said Takuya. Other than the Petaldramon attack, the response team had seen very little action, mostly uneventful precautionary visits. None of these required any more than two team members, and Thomas usually preferred to send Koji or Cody, who tended to be more diplomatic than Takuya. This left a pair of goggleheads with plenty of free time.

"I thought you said you were bored and wanted something to do anyway," said Takato.

"JP didn't need to know that," Takuya muttered through his teeth.

"Excuse me." They all looked up to find Nene trying to get their attention.

JP popped up and bounded over to her, putting on a grin. "Hey there. Something we can do to help?"

"Yes. How do I get someone to come up to my room and look at something?"

The wording flustered JP. "Up to your..."

Before he could lose himself in a fit of chuckles, Jeremy asked, "JP, do you have the forms with you?

"Forms?" Nene said, frowning. "It's just that my bed frame has been a bit wobbly. I can't tell if it's breaking or-"

JP waved her off. "No need to worry about all the paperwork. I'll head up there after lunch and take a look at it."

Her smile returned immediately. "That would be great. Thank you."

He watched her walk away. Jeremy, Takuya and Takato watched him. Once she was gone, Jeremy said, "I thought we were swamped today."

"And if you have time for her, when are you fixing Kenta's door?" Takato asked.

"What's wrong with Kenta's door?"

"It doesn't close. He filled out a form last week."

A wide grin appeared on Takuya's face. "JP..." he said teasingly.

By the time JP turned back around, there was no disguising the blush on his face. "Hey, come on..." He walked back to the stage. "You guys know where I'm coming from."

"Oh, I'd have done the same thing, but we're still gonna give you a hard time."

"What's the deal with her anyway?" JP turned back to make sure Nene was gone before questioning Jeremy. "Is she with Mikey or something?"

"Mikey?" Jeremy was taken aback. "Of course not."

"Christopher?"

"Don't think so."

"Seriously? They're not into her? I mean, look at her, she could be..." JP turned around again. "She could be in one of those idol groups."

"Hey, don't think I haven't noticed." Jeremy set down his hammer and sat up. Now it was his turn to grin. "I don't mean to brag, but Nene and I got pretty close in the Digital World. I saved her skin more than a few times."

"I thought you didn't have a digivice then," Takato said.

Jeremy folded his arms, nose in the air. "Didn't need one."

Takuya wasn't buying it. "Either way, it didn't work out for you, did it?"

"You know how it goes. She wanted to focus on her career and didn't feel like settling down."

Shaking his head, Takato deadpanned, "This was when she was what, 13?"

"Don't worry about it, Jeremy. It happens to all of us," JP said, overly wistful. "Go to the Digital World, fall in love... then summer's over and you go your separate ways."

Takuya scoffed. "JP, if you think that's actually what happened between you and Zoe, I got some bad news for you."

Jeremy's eyes lit up. "Ah, had a thing for Zoe, huh?"

"Oh, he was awful! It was pretty hilarious."

"Hilarious for you, maybe," JP muttered. "At least I'm not the one who blew it with her."

"Well, at least I dated her for a little while."

"Oh yeah?" Jeremy turned to Takuya. "How long did that last?"

Takuya smirked. "Long enough." He threw in a wink before turning back to JP. "But seriously, if you couldn't land Zoe, what are your odds gonna be with Nene?"

Takato scratched his chin. "I don't know... you guys are close to her so you probably never noticed, but Zoe's really hard to talk to. I always thought she was sort of distant. I'm not sure Nene would be harder to get to know." He shrugged. "And sure, Nene's really cute, but so's Zoe."

Pointing back at Takato, Takuya said, "Should I tell Jeri you said that?"

"Please don't," Takato squeaked.

"That's an interesting question though: who's harder to get- Zoe or Nene?" Takuya slammed a fist into his palm. "Well, I think we need to test this out. And it's perfect; JP had a crush on Zoe and Jeremy was all over Nene. Let's switch it up."

"Wait, what?" Jeremy asked.

"You go after Zoe while JP goes after Nene. Let's see who wins."

"Well, I've never really talked to Zoe before, but..." Jeremy stood up, hands on his hips and suddenly boisterous. "I accept any challenge! I will not lose to you, JP Shibayama! What are the stakes?"

JP folded his arms. "I think in this case, success is its own reward, wouldn't you say?"

Takato picked up his hammer and went back to work, shaking his head. "Just leave me out of this one."

"Don't want Jeri finding out?" Takuya asked.

"Nah, Jeri would just be annoyed." Takato pounded a nail in place. "But if Rika found out, she'd kill us."

* * *

Rika Nonaka stood in disbelief at what Henry and Yolei had created. Her week off duty had been spent relaxing, typically reading or playing cards with Ken. She assumed Henry had mostly done the same, with the addition of private activities with Yolei that Rika refused to think about. She should have known the real reason those two were compatible, and that they were a dangerous tandem.

Henry made a couple final checks on the wiring, then turned to his accomplice. "Okay, switch it on." He stepped back as Yolei turned on a breaker.

It was still only a frame of metal and wires, and missing its arms and ears, but the outline was still recognizable as a Terriermon. A four-foot animatronic Terriermon that shook its tush at Yolei's command.

"Perfecto!" Yolei exclaimed.

"Dance, giant me, dance!" shouted the real Terriermon.

Rika folded her arms. "What is the point of this?"

"It's fun and it killed time," Henry replied.

Ken shrugged. "Who doesn't want a giant dancing Terriermon robot?"

"This is really what you did all week?" Rika asked.

"This and a lot of sex," Yolei answered. Rika shuddered, face flushing.

Even Henry looked away in embarrassment. "Yolei..."

"Oh, relax." Yolei turned off the breaker and the monstrosity stopped. "Don't act like you didn't enjoy it."

"Still..." He shook his head. "So are you gonna work on the arms while I'm gone?"

"I wanted to get started on the ears. Those will take longer." Henry nodded in agreement.

Terriermon leaped up, caught a draft and floated onto Yolei's shoulders. "Gonna take forever to get these babies right."

As Yolei pet him on the head, Kazu found them. "Hey guys, you packed? Marcus wants to get out of here."

"Be there in a second!" Henry shouted back, leaving Kazu to stare in silent awe at the robot.

"I'm gonna miss you," Yolei said, taking Henry's hands. "This was so much fun!"

"I know. Can't wait to get back to-" She interrupted him with a deep kiss, throwing her arms around him.

Rika and Ken both turned away, blushing a little. Ken started to mumble, "Um... it was nice spending time with you."

"Yes... it was. I'll... see you next time." Rika glanced at him for a moment, then leaned in for a quick hug.

"Whoa, get a room guys," Yolei said. Rika jumped back quickly.

She, Henry and Terriermon followed Kazu out, all getting in a few more goodbyes before heading back out on patrol.

Once they were gone, Yolei grinned at Ken. "You two are so adorable."

Ken shook his head. "I told you, I don't know if we're an 'us two' yet."

"You are." Yolei smiled and put her hands on his shoulders. "But now that she's out of the way you can help me get Terriermech back to our room, right?"

Ken narrowed his eyes but silently obeyed. Yolei wrapped up the remote wiring and secured one end while Ken lifted the other. They had to walk slowly, but it was stable and steady.

"I still can't tell with Rika," Ken said.

"You like her. She likes you. She spent the whole week with you. It might not be my definition of dating, but it still counts."

"I spend time with a lot of people. That doesn't mean anything."

"Rika doesn't. Henry says she's really selective." Yolei shrugged. "But if you want proof, Wormmon's totally jealous of her. So there."

Ken nodded. "That's true. He got pretty wary of you when we were together."

She paused. Close as she and Ken were, she always stumbled when their past came up. "I can't believe how long ago that was."

He hesitated a bit before saying, "You seem pretty serious about Henry."

She frowned. Normally, this would be a subject of pride, but she couldn't be boastful about it around Ken. Owing in part to the unique circumstances of the Digital World, her unwillingness to commit to a serious relationship had driven them apart soon after arriving. It was amicable, but she wasn't sure how he felt about her return to steady dating.

"Yeah, I guess," she huffed. "I mean, it's all about killing time, right?"

A disbelieving smile appeared on Ken's face. "You two are building a robot together. You're ecstatic."

She didn't respond, and they remained silent until reaching her room. They set Terriermech down. Finally, she said, "You're not bothered by us, are you? I mean, I'm kinda doing what I told you I didn't want anymore."

Ken smiled and rubbed her shoulder. "It's fine. I'm glad to see you this happy." He opened the door, but stopped before walking out. "And I can understand how hard it can be with him gone so much." He looked back. "There's no reason that you have to stick with it, but you are. And I'm proud of you."

It was only a slight recoil, but it was there. Yolei smiled faintly, at least until Ken closed the door behind him.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara was the only one that noticed Zoe walk into the hall, carrying a tray of food. She looked over the construction project, at him and Jeremy and Takato, before silently sitting down at the table farthest from them.

"Hey, JT," Takuya said. Jeremy looked up and Takuya motioned towards Zoe. "Now's your chance." Jeremy stared at her as she ate her lunch. "Show me your moves," Takuya added, grinning.

Jeremy wiped the sawdust from his hands and pants and walked up to her. She was too busy looking over paperwork to notice until he coughed. She wasn't startled. She didn't even look up.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Whatcha looking at?" Jeremy replied.

"Designs for the stage," she said with no enthusiasm. "Izzy wanted me to go over them with JP, but it looks like he's out right now."

"He's helping someone upstairs. He should be back later."

"Okay."

Jeremy turned back to Takuya and Takato. Takuya was staring back at him, gesturing him on. He returned to Zoe and asked, "So what exactly is your job around here?"

She stared straight ahead and flatly answered, "Associate director of communications." She looked down again and added, "Basically I fill in for Kari whenever she's away or wigs out or something. Most of the time I'm just a lackey for Command."

"Well, at least you're up there and not stuck cleaning toilets."

Zoe scoffed. "They pay more attention to the girls who clean the toilets than they do to me. They don't realize I'm up there half the time."

Jeremy realized this was getting him nowhere and changed the subject. "So what do you do for fun around here?"

She cracked a half-smile. "You've been here a few weeks. If you're already out of ideas, you're gonna lose it." She looked at him; it was the first time she had all conversation. "That's half the challenge here."

He scratched his head. "I mean... do you get out of the castle much? You can turn into a Digimon, right? That's gotta be fun."

"It's not." Zoe turned right back to the table. She grabbed her tray and stood up.

"Wait, you're done?" he asked, pointing at her half-eaten sandwich. "Aren't you going to finish that?"

"No, you want it?"

"Well..." Jeremy wanted to continue talking to her. At the same time, he hadn't had lunch yet. Zoe set her plate on the table and walked away.

He picked up the plate and took it back to the stage. Takuya was still grinning.

"That was a big fail," said Jeremy.

Takuya took the sandwich off the plate. "Well, you got half a sandwich out of it." He took a big bite. "I'd say that counts for something."

* * *

Nene Amano dreaded the timing of the knock on her door. Yes, she knew JP would be up any moment to inspect her bed. She also knew Mikey would be cleared for deployment soon and she'd have to be ready to go back on the road. This meant packing, and this meant anxiety.

She opened the door and greeted JP. "Come on in. I'm sorry about the mess."

He responded with a smile. "No way you could make a mess that would bother me. I mean, have you seen Davis's room?" He entered and found Nene's entire wardrobe on her bed- several sets of shirts, blouses, jackets and skirts. They were organized, "mess" was not the best word, but their placement was a problem.

"This does make it harder to fix the bed," JP muttered.

"I really am sorry." Nene took one of the sets and carefully transferred it to Angie's bed.

"You know you have a dresser, right?" JP took a jacket and tossed it over.

"We're heading out today or tomorrow and I need to find something to wear on the road." Nene frowned when JP threw a shirt across. "Do you mind if I handle-"

"On the road?" JP held up a particularly short skirt.

"That's the problem I'm running into." She cringed when he threw the skirt as well.

It wasn't that Nene was picky about what she wore but, in hindsight, her outfits on the first Digital World tour had been rather impractical and she wanted to avoid the same discomfort. Unfortunately, this clashed with her usual fashion choices and the selections she had ordered down the river.

JP continued to toss her clothes around, faster than she could. "Really, let me do this," Nene said, trying to be insistent. Having a boy she barely knew laying hands on her personal belongings was bad enough, but he was getting everything wrinkled and she couldn't be positive his hands were even clean.

"No problem, I got it," JP replied, reaching for the next item and picking up a bra. He held it for a moment, then blushed and dropped it. "Uh, on second thought..."

With an angry huff, Nene managed the rest. JP bent down to check the bedposts. A little too far down.

"Excuse me, do you mind?" she asked. He popped back up and waited for her to finish.

Once she had everything on Angie's bed, she allowed him to start looking at hers. She saw no reason not to make her selections and pack while he was there, but first she had to straighten and regroup everything.

"I can't see what's wrong here," JP said. "Hey, do you want to jump on so I can see what's going on?"

She turned around. "Jump... on?" She clutched at the skirt she was wearing; this was her whole problem.

He smiled. "Yeah, you know. Put some weight on it. I'd do it but I'd be afraid of breaking it." He chuckled at himself.

Nene carefully boarded the bed, sitting on her knees. JP shined a flashlight on the posts underneath. He asked, "Okay, could you bounce or something?" She sighed loudly but did so. "Hmm... could you go a little harder?"

She did, but replied, "Is this really necessary?" She felt the frame shift slightly. "Hey, I just felt it."

"I see it!" JP stood up and went to his toolbox.

"Can I stop now?"

He turned around. "Oh, yeah yeah. Thanks."

She stopped and dismounted, very deliberately as JP watching her the whole time. She returned to Angie's bed while he went back under hers, this time with a drill and a piece of metal.

"The wood's cracking. I can brace it now and get that post replaced later."

With a frown, she said, "You... don't have to do that right now. You can do that while I'm gone."

"It's okay, I'll just take care of it quick."

Nene huffed, but turned around and tried to focus on her own task.

JP's small talk made that difficult. "So how are you enjoying things so far?"

"It's fine, I suppose," she replied. "It's still a bit of a shock to be stuck here, but I can't complain about the company or conditions."

"Any of the guys here catching your eye?"

She frowned. Bad enough she was being forced to hold a conversation; now it was getting personal. "I wouldn't consider anyone here my type."

"Wow," he said in surprise. "What's your type?"

She rolled her eyes and answered, "Strong... handsome... quiet." It had always been her stock answer to the question back in her idol days, only this time she dropped the bashful giggle. She never thought she'd need it again.

"Have you had a chance to do any exploring? Hope you're not cooped up here the whole time."

"I get enough fresh air when I'm out on missions."

"Oh, so you haven't had a chance to get out by the waterfall?" JP pulled himself from out of the bed and sat up to face her. "I should totally take you out there sometime, it's gorgeous. Great place to go swimming."

Nene turned back around, unable to concentrate with him watching her. Watching her from a low angle. "Thanks, but I don't want to trouble you."

"No trouble at all! Hey, I could get my spirits from Koji, we could take MetalKabuterimon and-"

"Are you finished?" She asked, cutting him off.

"W... what?"

Suddenly, Nene had no interesting in being patient. "With my bed? Are you finished with my bed?"

"Oh, uh, yeah." He got to his feet.

"Then if you don't mind, I'd like to finish packing." She folded her arms. "Clearly, you are _not_ the quiet type."

JP stared back, reeling from the sting in both her words and her eyes. He lowered his head. "Sorry."

He shuffled to the door and opened it. Kari was on the other side, trying to knock. She hit his chest instead.

"Uh... who's there?" JP said.

Kari pulled her hand back, face red. "I'm sorry. Was I interrupting something?"

"No... I was just leaving." He stepped past her.

"Oh, JP, if you haven't talked to Zoe yet about the stage plans, stop by Command and talk to her."

JP nodded at her, forcing a smile. "Will do, thanks."

As he left for the elevators, Kari entered Nene's room. "Can I help you?" Nene asked.

"Are you packing?" Kari asked.

"Yes, I assume Mikey will be cleared soon."

"That's actually what I wanted to talk you about. He's ready, so we'll be sending you all back out as soon as you're all packed." Kari smiled. "It looks like you're pretty close."

"Not as much as you'd think," Nene mumbled. "I'm surprised you're talking to me directly. Are you and Mikey still having problems? Ewan told me what happened."

Kari looked away. "Tai's over it. That's... good enough."

Nene nodded. "I understand." Kari turned around and opened the door. Nene deliberated for a moment before calling, "Actually, while you're here..."

"Yeah?" Kari closed the door and faced Nene again.

"You're an officer, right?"

"Of course. What is it?"

"I don't know what you have in place for these sorts of things, but I feel like I need to make a complaint about JP."

* * *

Angie Hinomoto had just finished installing the last of the fruit on the last of the trees in the habitat when she heard Shoutmon run past. He never did anything, running included, quietly. From her vantage point, she could see Mikey waiting at the entrance, so she climbed down and followed Shoutmon.

Mikey was jogging in place, doing stretches and anything else that showed off his now-healthy leg. "Check it out. Good as new."

"Awesome!" Shoutmon exclaimed. "Can we finally go kick Petaldramon's butt now?"

"You bet! Everybody's packing up. We might even be out longer if we get any clues on those two missing guys."

"You guys are looking for Matt and TK?" Nobody had noticed Kenta standing there as well. MarineAngemon and Cutemon were with him.

"Yeah, yeah. Those two. Oh hey, Cutemon! Wanna come with?"

"What?" Angie cried.

"Yeah, I mean if he was with us last time, maybe we wouldn't have had to pull back."

Kenta put a hand on Cutemon's head. "But he's been really helpful here too. And shouldn't it be Angie's call? I mean, she's his tamer."

"Tamer?" Cutemon asked, looking up. "What's a tamer? Sounds cruel."

"Is," said MarineAngemon.

Kenta jumped, staring at MarineAngemon. "What?! Is something wrong? Are you okay?" His breathing got heavy until MarineAngemon let out a giggle. Just as quickly, he sighed in relief. "Don't joke about stuff like that. It's not funny!"

Mikey turned to Angie, pointing at Kenta in confusion. Angie held up a hand and shook her head. Instead, Mikey turned back to Kenta. "But c'mon guys, don't you think it's more important to have him helping us fight than... whatever goes on here?"

"Well... no, but..." Angie stopped herself. What was her "but?" That Cutemon was her ticket to feeling like she had some worth here? That she felt some sense of pride whenever he healed somebody?Everybody in the castle was accustomed to the idea that each human had a single Digimon partner. Everybody had drawn the conclusion that Cutemon was tied to her and not Mikey. Angie couldn't decide if it was selfish, but she knew she wasn't going to tell him.

"At least let Cutemon decide for himself," she muttered, looking away and biting her lip.

Mikey rode with it, smiling at Cutemon. "C'mon, Cutemon. Dorulumon gets awfully lonely without you."

"I do not!" Dorulumon shouted from the Fusion Loader.

Cutemon looked at the Fusion Loader, and at Angie, before turning to Mikey. "I suppose so. I'm a brave boy and I want to help you fight."

"Awesome," Mikey said. "Hop in." He didn't notice Angie's shoulders slump as Cutemon entered the Fusion Loader. Mikey rubbed Angie's shoulder. "Well, see you when I get back."

Angie wrapped her arms around him, gritting her teeth. "Just come back in one piece this time."

"Don't sweat it. I'll be fine." Mikey patted her back, pulled away, and left. He gave one final wave as he walked out. Angie clenched her fist.

"Mad," said MarineAngemon.

Angie turned to Kenta. He was looking away. "Well, why shouldn't I be?" He stamped his foot and turned to her. "Angie, why did you let him take Cutemon like that? We really need him around here."

"I'm..." She shook her head. "I'm not happy about it either. He can be so aggravating sometimes."

"Why are you crying?"

Her fist wiped her eyes. She hadn't noticed the tears. "Because it's still Mikey and I still-"

"Stop." Kenta frowned at MarineAngemon. "Just stop."

"Uh, Angie?" They turned around at Agumon's call. He was fidgeting with his claws. "So don't point any fingers and I'm not going into details, but uh... long story short, Veemon's on fire."

Kenta and Angie just groaned.

* * *

Kari Kamiya struggled to concentrate on the monitors. Not because of what was going on in the conference room behind her. It was about who was in there.

"All signs indicate that Petaldramon has moved farther north, but still camped out in the woods," Thomas said from his workstation next to her. "Kari, can you confirm?"

"Uh, it's hard to say," Kari replied. "He's been really quiet lately."

Thomas continued to gather information to help support the investigation team as they headed out. Kari stole another glance behind her. Izzy, Zoe and JP all walked out.

"Well, I'm glad we're on the same page," Zoe said. She slapped JP on the back. "Keep up the good work!"

"No problem, Z. Talk to you later!" JP replied. He and Izzy nodded at each other as JP boarded the elevator.

Kari let out a snicker. Thomas frowned. "What's so distracting?"

"Nothing," Kari said, still staring at the closed elevator doors. "Just JP."

"What's so distracting about JP?" Zoe asked. "I mean, other than him being JP, but you're used to that."

"Guess not everybody is." Kari stifled a chuckle. "Sounds like he rubbed Nene the wrong way while fixing something up in her room."

Zoe nodded. "That's not hard to imagine."

"She seemed really serious too. Like she wanted to make a harassment complaint or something." Kari shook her head.

"Oh, wow. What are you doing about it?"

"Oh, I don't know. I mean, it's JP. I'm sure he didn't mean anything."

Zoe started to frown. "But... what are you doing about it?"

Kari turned around, surprised that Zoe was suddenly and absolutely serious. "I guess I haven't thought about it."

"So Nene complained about him and you're just waving it off?"

"I don't know... it's JP." Kari smiled. "You know what he's like more than the rest of us."

Zoe looked around the room. The other officers had all returned to their stations, ignoring the two of them. Only Thomas occasionally glanced at them, probably annoyed that they were disrupting his instructions for Mikey.

She turned back to Kari and said, "Can I talk you downstairs, please?"

Kari looked around as well, but pulled off her headphones and followed Zoe down the stairs into the storage room. She closed the door behind her and asked, "What's up?"

Zoe slapped her.

With a finger in Kari's face, Zoe said, "Listen Kari, it doesn't matter how well we know JP. All that matters is that Nene came to you and told you he was making her uncomfortable. You're an officer and she's confiding in you. You damn well better do something about it."

"Well... I..." Kari was taken aback, one hand on her red cheek.

"You don't get what it's like," Zoe continued. "You're cute little Kari, the commander's baby sister. No one's approaching you." Her eyes started to well up. "But there's a lot of idiots downstairs and every so often they act like it and every so often it'll be around one of the girls. And if one of those girls has the guts to complain about it to the people in charge than the least you can do is listen."

"Zoe, I-"

"No! I don't care who we're dealing with. I will not let you ignore this, Kari Kamiya."

Kari had never seen such intensity out of Zoe's eyes before. She had no idea how to go about it, or even how severe it actually was. But she nodded back all the same.

* * *

Davis Motomiya ended up being the one to deliver the news to JP. They didn't have any official process for a harassment complaint and Tai and Izzy scrambled to come up with a fair one. They were totally winging it, and Davis had always been the best at creating the false impression that they weren't. Mostly because _everything_ Davis did had an air of winging it and the other officers always appeared organized by comparison.

The first thing he did was pick up a drill and join the stage construction crew.

Takato was the first to see him. "Uh, do you have permission to play with power tools?"

Davis revved the drill. "What, no fair you guys get all the fun."

"Hey, if you're free to help, jump in," JP said, showing Davis where to start drilling.

"To what do we owe the honor of an officer's presence?" Takuya asked.

Davis drilled a few holes in the wood, most in the right places, before answering, "Oh, I'm supposed to send JP up so they can ask him about some stuff."

"I was just up there," JP said. "The Zs said everything looked good."

Takato winced. "You don't seriously call Izzy and Zoe 'the Zs,' do you?"

Davis shook his head. "Nah, Tai needs to ask you about what happened with Nene."

"What about me and Nene?" JP asked.

"Something about a harassment complaint. I wasn't paying that much attention." Davis looked up, a puzzled look on his face. "You say something to her?"

"No! I mean..." JP pressed his fingers together. "Maybe a little. She's upset about that?"

"Must be. She reported it to Kari."

"Well, Kari freaks out over every-" Takuya stopped when he saw Davis's glare. He didn't realize Davis was capable of such a look.

"It wasn't Kari," Davis answered. "She was gonna let it slide until Zoe said something to her." He huffed. "Now we gotta sort through all this. You think that's any fun?"

JP stood up, backing away. "H-hold on a second, am I really in trouble over this?" Davis could only shrug.

Takuya saw Zoe walking by and stood up. "I think we need some answers. Hey, Zoe!" She stopped and swore to herself as he approached. "What's this I hear about you getting JP in trouble?"

"Me?" she responded. "I didn't report him. And I'm not an officer." JP joined them. "And I also didn't harass Nene."

"Neither did I!" JP exclaimed. Zoe and Takuya both looked at him. "I mean, I guess I might have said something or other... and kinda picked up her bra... but it was an accident! I didn't mean to do anything."

Takuya leaned in. "Yeah, you know JP wouldn't actually hurt anybody. But Davis says you're the one making them investigate."

"Well, yeah!" Zoe replied. "They were just gonna let him off the hook! I couldn't let them do that."

"Why not?" JP asked, increasingly frantic. "Is Nene still here? Can I talk to her?"

"She already left." JP groaned. "Look, I'm sure you didn't mean anything, but-"

"But what?" Takuya interrupted. "If he didn't mean anything, what's the problem? He might get in real trouble because of you! Jeez, Kari's about to do something right for a change and you stop her!"

Davis was about to stand up, but Takato put a hand on his shoulder and said, "Might wanna let that one slide."

Zoe continued to defend herself. "I'm not going to let them ignore Nene." She looked away, scratching her arm. "You don't know what it's like when you report that and it isn't taken seriously."

"Well, at least give me a chance to talk to her and apologize." JP was already in tears. "I really bothered her that much?"

Takuya put a hand on JP's shoulder. "I'm sure it wasn't that bad. She's just overreacting."

"You don't know that!" Zoe shouted.

"You don't know anything either! You weren't there! And why the hell are you taking her side over JP's?"

"I..." Zoe stopped, suddenly speechless. She tried to speak, "Because..."

Takuya scoffed and walked back to the stage. "Never mind."

JP looked down, mumbling, "Some friend you are."

He walked to the keep, slouching the whole time. Davis met him halfway, trying and failing to offer some reassurance. Zoe watched, following too late to catch the elevator. She paced back and forth, waiting for it to return, desperately trying to convince herself that she hadn't made a life-altering mistake.

* * *

JP Shibayama wasn't questioned for long. He told Tai his account of what had happened and tried to explain that he was more focused on helping Nene to realize the awkwardness of his actions. Ultimately, however, he had to come clean and admit that yes, at some point he was attempting to ask her out.

The wait in the meeting room was unbearable. He looked out the window frequently. Zoe was standing in the corner by the elevator, watching Tai and Izzy discuss JP's fate. Her hands shook.

When Tai finally returned, he heaved a sigh and sat opposite JP. "So, it doesn't sound like you were doing anything too bad, but we can't let anyone feel like they aren't comfortable here. That's really important, you know." JP nodded as Tai continued, "So we're going to suspend your river privileges for a month. We also want a written apology for Nene before she gets back, and we should have a copy of that too. We'll also figure out some sort of sensitivity training."

JP bit his lip and shook his head. "Okay?" Tai asked.

"I'm sorry. I really am," JP whimpered.

"I know. It's just... I know. You can head back down whenever you're ready."

Tai walked out. JP remained. Tai walked up to Thomas's desk, looking over his shoulder before asking, "Do we actually have something for sensitivity training?"

"No idea," Thomas replied. "I was just going off the DATS employee handbook."

They looked back as JP finally left the room and walked to the elevator.

While he waited, Zoe said, "JP, I... look, can we talk?"

JP didn't turn around, ignoring her pleas. The elevator arrived and he stepped on, pushing a button to return to the ground floor without facing her.

As the doors closed, Zoe held out a hand. It shook. "JP..."

* * *

Christopher Aonuma wanted to say "I told you so" so badly, but their situation was just a little too dicey for him to boast. They had done everything right to get to Petaldramon: they avoided the traps that hindered them the first time, he and Ewan used their units to fend off the minions, and everything was positioned for a one-on-one fight between Petaldramon and Shoutmon X4B. With support from JetMervamon and Antylamon, it looked like a sure victory. Then Petaldramon harvested a bunch of trees, grew several times his size, and swiped Shoutmon X4B out of commission in the resulting confusion. But no, they couldn't have eliminated the trees to begin with. That would have been "bad for the environment."

Despite the loss, it was more a precarious stalemate than anything warranting a retreat. Petaldramon was big, but Suzie and Antylamon were doing a good job reading his attack patterns and avoiding them. JetMervamon was too fast to catch, but neither of the two were capable of supplying the necessary level of damage to bring the beast down. ZekeGreymon surely was, but Christopher's troops had their hands full preventing the masses of Woodmon and Cherrymon from overrunning their position.

After a long bout of nobody hitting anything, Petaldramon started to get desperate. "Mikey, look out!" Suzie shouted as the ground below him started to sprout vines.

Mikey jumped back just in time and shouted, "Reload- Knightmon!" Now he had a defender. "Nene, he's targeting us! Get airborne!"

"JetMervamon, digi-defuse!" Nene cried, but it wasn't in time to avoid Petaldramon's Leaf Cyclone. She was blown backwards. As she tried to resist and gain a foothold, the leaves started to cut into her. Nene fell to her knees and was about to succumb to the pain when she found herself suddenly airborne.

"Sorry I'm late," Sparrowmon said, holding her general in her arms. "Are you okay, Nene?"

Nene, still bleeding and still reeling, took a few breaths and smiled. "Just in time. Thanks."

"Anytime, Nene. Sorry about your clothes though."

"Not as much as me." She looked down at her tattered shorts. "I stole these from Angie."

Sparrowmon dropped her off with Cutemon, who was already busy dealing with Shoutmon at his makeshift triage unit. She turned around and charged directly at Petaldramon, screaming, "This is for hurting Nene! Lightning Lasers!"

With Petaldramon well occupied, Mikey used his squawker to contact Christopher. "How's it going back there?"

"They just keep coming," Christopher replied. "From every angle too. They go down easy enough but Tuwarmon's not fast enough to keep the whole perimeter secure."

Mikey turned around. Armies of Woodmon and Cherrymon continued to advance behind them. Greymon and MailBirdramon were responsible for defending more than half of the perimeter, while Tuwarmon and Christopher's other troops took the rest. The enemy was slow and steady, and if speed was more important than power, Mikey had a plan.

Tapping his goggles, Mikey said, "First I'm sending Antylamon back to help." He looked up to make sure Suzie got the message. She did, nodding as she relayed it to her partner. "As soon as you get the slightest break, we swap MetalGreymon for Sparrowmon. Got it?"

"Sounds good... if we ever get that break," Christopher mumbled.

The stream of Woodmon continued unabated, while Nene's units were barely enough to keep Petaldramon at bay. It was long enough that Mikey began to consider other options when Ewan caught movement out of the corner of his eye. Ewan ducked as he saw the projectile and was about to tell the others to do the same when he realized that the Woodmon were the target.

The giant boomerang circled Ewan's side of the perimeter, slashing through several of the Woodmon lined up to engage Tuwarmon. They fell to pieces and forced those behind them to backpedal. The boomerang circled around, over Ewan's head and back to its source. Ewan finally caught sight of a giant aboriginal mask staring back at him.

"What's that?" he asked.

"Our break," said Christopher. "Have Tuwarmon cover my side. Greymon! MailBirdramon! Digifuse!"

In seconds, MetalGreymon was marching towards Petaldramon. Tuwarmon slid over in time to prevent any Cherrymon from taking advantage. This created an opening elsewhere, which was filled quickly despite the outside interference, but that hole would also be plugged.

"Wingtip Laser!" Sparrowmon shouted, slashing through the next wave attempting to collapse the perimeter. The attack hit plenty of Woodmon, but didn't destroy all of them, nor did it phase the Cherrymon interspersed in the mob.

"Ewan, that didn't work like I thought it would!" she said.

"Then I hope Sis doesn't mind me borrowing you." Ewan replied, "Sparrowmon! Tuwarmon! Digifuse!"

This fusion allowed Sparrowmon to fly low and fast while Tuwarmon used his techniques to quickly cover the whole perimeter. It made quick work of the opposing army, but wasn't flawless. Some of the Woodmon were able to get through. One got close enough to attack Ewan.

"Got you now!" he shouted.

"Guess again!" Suzie answered.

"Bunny Blades!" Antylamon finished.

At the front, Petaldramon knew he was in trouble when he saw MetalGreymon digivolve to ZekeGreymon. No amount of thorns or vines was getting in the way of the charging attacker.

"Final Trident Strike!" One attack was all it took to finish off Petaldramon. The rest of the enemies, in awe of ZekeGreymon's power, backed away and retreated.

Mikey nodded in satisfaction. "A little sloppy, but the job's done." He high-fived Christopher.

Most of the Digimon retreated back to their respective Fusion Loaders, including all of Mikey's in order to get a proper rest.

Nene emerged from behind a tree, already wearing a change of clothes. "Guess I'm back to skirts," she muttered. She found all the bandages on her legs terribly unattractive.

Bits of Petaldramon's data still hung in the air. Mikey frowned as it slowly disintegrated. "You know, that was a heck of a shot, but that sorta kills our chances of learning anything about Matt and TK."

"General, permission to speak?" Lopmon tugged at Mikey's shorts. "Suzie would like a word with you."

Mikey approached Suzie, who held a finger to her mouth before he could say anything. Once he got close enough, she pointed at Ewan and whispered, "Looks like he saw something."

The giant mask was still there, staring back at Ewan. Ewan was transfixed by it. So was Mikey when he joined him. The giant mask tilted.

"Is that a Digimon?" Mikey asked Ewan. Cautiously, he approached the edge of trees. "What do you want?"

"More humans?" came a curious voice from behind the mask. "Fascinating..."

Mikey's eyes lit up and he rushed up to him. The Digimon backed away and ran deeper into the woods. "Hey! Come back here!"

Suzie poked Ewan's shoulder and showed him her D-Power and its display identifying Sepikmon. "Mikey, we have a name!" Ewan shouted, stopping Mikey from running blindly after it. "It's Sepikmon."

Mikey turned around and ran up to Nene. "Send the Monitamon after him and get a hold of Thomas! We need to see where it's going." He looked back at the woods. New as he was, even he knew how much they couldn't afford to lose this lead. Finding Matt and TK depended on it.

* * *

Zoe Orimoto didn't get much sleep that night. Takuya had spread the word around too quickly for her to get much sympathy from Koji or Koichi. She worried about a possible backlash against Nene, but with any luck it would be over and forgotten by the time her team returned home. Mostly, Zoe worried about herself.

It was still dark when she gave up and got out of bed. The ground floor of the castle was empty. She hoped that perhaps JP would be up early to do some sort of maintenance, but he was nowhere in sight. She ended up going outside and into the habitat. While her days of becoming Kazemon were long gone, she still felt a connection to the Digimon and with any luck there may have been someone inside that could at least listen to her. She no longer had any humans to confide in.

"I still feel like I did the right thing," she said aloud, leaning against a tree. "I mean, sure I don't know what happened, but Nene must have reported it for a reason. I've been in her shoes before. I had to make sure she was taken seriously." She shrugged. "At the same time, I know JP too well to think he did anything on purpose and I'm really scared that this is going to ruin our friendship. Same with Takuya." She sniffed back a tear. "They're the only real friends I have here."

"Know what I think?" Biyomon replied from inside the tree. Zoe looked up, hoping for some sage advice. Instead, the pink bird said, "I think it's a shame you don't have your own Digimon partner, because you could really use one right now."

Zoe frowned. "You can't help me?"

"Sweetie, my partner's social life is totally stuck because she doesn't know whether her boyfriend is alive or dead. I've got my hands full."

Zoe grumbled to herself and left the habitat, opting instead to walk around the castle until some sort of epiphany struck her. Instead, she found Jeremy, negotiating a weedwhacker around the base of Wizard Keep.

He caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye and said, "Why do we have weeds here?" He turned the machine off. "Why are you up this early?"

"Couldn't sleep," she said. "Where's JP?"

Jeremy looked down at his handiwork before answering, "He's calling in sick. That whole thing yesterday got to him pretty bad." He snapped a dandelion with his foot. "Sure left me with a busy day though."

"I'm sorry. It's not fair that this is hitting you too. But I suppose he doesn't want to talk to me."

"I don't think he wants to talk to anybody today." He turned to her, smiling weakly. "But once he's up for it, I'm sure you'll be the first name on his list."

She leaned against the wall and sighed. "I doubt that. This whole thing's my fault. He won't want to speak to me ever again."

He set the weedwhacker aside and walked up to her. "He's not stupid enough to do that."

Zoe shook her head. "I hope not. I mean, I stand by what I did and he needs to understand he has to be more careful. But he's one of my best friends. One of my only friends, really. I can't stand the thought of losing him and Takuya.

"Well, maybe you need more friends," Jeremy suggested. Zoe looked up at him. "I mean, you know he's not a bad guy." She shook her head. "And he's really tore up over upsetting Nene. He already turned in his apology."

"I believe that."

"He's gonna forgive you. You shouldn't be friends with someone who won't."

"I don't have that many options."

Jeremy raised his eyebrows. "What? A sweet girl like you? Who wouldn't be friends with you?"

"Sweet?" She let out a sad chuckle. "You don't know me very well."

"Well, let's fix that! Bet we can talk the kitchen into getting an early breakfast." He held out an arm and grinned. "Come on... my treat."

She chuckled again; this time it was more jovial. "We don't have to pay for it, dummy."

"All right then. We'll go dutch."

Her head shook, but her smile remained. "That won't work either." She took his arm anyway. "I used to live in Italy. I hate the Dutch." She laughed as they headed inside. At no point on their way to the kitchen did she release his arm.

Somewhere along the way, Jeremy remembered Takuya's stupid challenge. At the very least, Jeremy was forging a friendship with Zoe. All JP got from Nene was a complaint and formal sanctions. There would be no disputing who the winner was.

At least there wouldn't be if Jeremy ever bothered to tell anybody. For now, he didn't care.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 8: "Disaster Hearts"**  
Mimi hears about the lead on Matt & TK, but bad memories of their disappearance and an ambush calls her resolve into question. Jeri and Koichi ponder their affair. Marcus's team makes an interesting discovery while Keenan helps the investigation team pursue Sepikmon.

" _Whatever started when you guys got here... we're still fighting. All of us. Whether you like it or not."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** While reviews are always encouraged and helpful, there is now a discussion thread for Neverworld in the Digital Connections forum here on the site (ForumsAnimeDigimonscroll down past the RP forums). Please use this for any discussions or speculations, and especially for any questions you might have. There's a lot of history and elements to the world that will never end up discussed and I'd rather share them in a public forum than through private messaging.

Frontier's cast was always really good about giving each other nicknames. JT is obviously short for Jeremy Tsurgi and affirms his place as JP's right-hand man.

The actual offending scene is supposed to be deliberately vague over whether or not it should constitute harassment. Feel free to make your own judgments, although remember that nobody else was there and have only Nene and JP's sides of the story to go off of.

Really, this whole fiasco was about Zoe, and kicks off a pretty heavy character arc for her. I'm really intent on getting mileage out of under-utilized female characters like her, Suzie, Yoshi and Angie. Given her particular dilemma in Frontier and her attitude during her season, it's easy to see someone who ends up dealing with a lot of the same stuff as Nene and is more conscious about these issues as a result.

I felt bad that Nene is never able to appreciate Zoe sticking up for her, and included the quick Sparrowmon/Nene moment to compensate. Zoe and Sparrowmon have the same voice actress.

o1oKBbReaOs  
B003RNUETE


	9. 08- Disaster Hearts

**Neverworld**

 _Come back, rebound- simpler said than found._  
 _Night by night and tear by tear._  
 _Somehow, some way, we all get to someday._  
 _Mile by mile and fear by fear._  
 _\- I Fight Dragons, "Disaster Hearts"_

 **Episode 8**

Thomas Norstein had a lot on his mind, so he forgave himself for eating breakfast in his workout clothes and with a sweaty towel around his neck. Usually he took a bath immediately after his sparring sessions with Gaomon, but he was famished and the hall was empty enough at this hour to prevent his current condition from (in some ways literally) raising a stink.

It also gave him an excuse to have Gaomon sit with him. "Sir, pardon me for saying so, but you appeared strangely unfocused today."

"I'm not surprised," Thomas answered. The news from the investigation team had everybody in Command anxious. More humans? It was earth-shattering. It was hopeful.

It was also the last update they had gotten, more than a day ago.

"Good morning Thomas. Hi Gaomon," said Mimi, holding a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon." She set it down on Thomas's table. "May I join you?"

Thomas grimaced. Residents usually recognized when someone was trying to have a moment with his Digimon partner. Mimi sabotaged that with a scratch behind Gaomon's ears. "Our pleasure," the dog Digimon replied. Thomas sensed Gaomon's foot tapping in excitement.

As Mimi sat, she said, "Thanks. Not too much company this early. I was hoping to spy on Jeremy and Zoe, but they aren't here today." She leaned in, grinning widely. "They were eating together yesterday morning. Very intriguing!"

"Pardon me for asking, but aren't you supposed to be serving right now?" Thomas was never susceptible to gossip.

Mimi leaned back, taking a bite of egg. "With Marcus and Mikey's teams on the road, we only need one person for breakfast. Tommy offered to take care of things this morning." She smiled and shrugged. "Actually, he's smuggling food for some of his friends heading out to the waterfall today. No one really cares, but if it gets me the morning off, I'll let him think he's getting away with something."

Thomas narrowed his eyes. "Some of his friends?"

"Yeah, you know, Takuya, Koji, Takato... I think Cody was even going with them."

The tactical officer frowned. "I really wish they'd run it by me before 80 percent of the response team heads out for the day."

She waved him off. "Oh, it's not like we've needed them all that much."

"No, but having them all take off defeats the purpose of having a response team."

"They're probably tired of being cooped up so much. I mean, thank heavens the new kids showed up. Otherwise, it's like nothing's happening."

Thomas looked down and closed his eyes. It was true that Takuya's team hadn't been needed much over the last couple weeks and Marcus's team had mostly routine work. But what Mikey's team had found was certainly something. Not that he would dare share that with Mimi.

At least until he opened his eyes again and found hers right in front of them. Her eyebrows were raised. "Or perhaps there's something that you're keeping upstairs." She shook her head slowly, a wry smile on her face. "It's not nice to keep secrets now, Thomas."

Gaomon coughed. "Mimi, you're, uh, stroking my leg, not his." His ears perked and he turned to his partner. "Sir, given whom it concerns, you should at least tell her."

"Who's a good boy?" cooed Mimi.

Thomas sighed. "Very well, although I will stress that you should think very hard before sharing this with anybody." He leaned in. "Mikey's team encountered a Digimon who said, and I quote, 'more humans.' As if he had seen others." Mimi gasped, backing away with her face turning pale. Thomas nodded. "Mikey's team is following him. That's all we know."

"You don't think..." She couldn't dare herself to think...

"As far as we know, the only other humans here are Matt and TK, so yes."

Mimi's hands shook. "This is amazing. Sora's gonna-"

Thomas held up a hand. "Hold on. That's all we have. Mikey's following him. Nene's team is very good at tracking and I've sent Keenan up there to help, but there's no guarantee they won't lose the scent. We haven't heard from them in a day and they're pushing the limits of our range of communication. On top of that, even if they were found, there's no telling what we'd have to go through to extract them or what condition they'd be in if we do." Those words deflated Mimi, but Thomas only added, "A lot could still go wrong, so you may want to think twice before telling the others."

Mimi nodded slowly, before looking up at Thomas. "How often does something like this happen? That we never hear about downstairs?"

"We've had several leads before that ended up going cold. But this is the most concrete evidence that they're still out there. And you know Tai wouldn't make it anything less than our top priority."

Mimi leaned forward and hugged Thomas. He was alarmed by how tight the girl's embrace was. "Please find them," she whispered.

After a nervous glance at Gaomon, Thomas patted her back in an effort to be reassuring. This was his problem: he was the only officer who didn't know Matt or TK. Their personalities and histories seemed like fictional characters to him. But he was the leader of the operation nonetheless, and he couldn't afford to let the others down.

* * *

Jeri Katou stood over the edge of the rock formation at the pool thirty feet below her. Takuya, Koji, Takato and Cody had already made the jump safely and were cheering her on. They didn't make her any less nervous. It was fairly reckless and her arm had just healed. She had only volunteered to do it to validate her invitation to this boys' day out and now questioned whom she was trying to impress.

"It's okay." She turned around; Koichi was right behind her, smiling. "You'll be fine."

She smiled back, reaching for his hand. He squeezed hers gently and let go. She ran and jumped off the ledge, letting out a scream as she fell into the cold water. Jeri surfaced to cheers. Takuya motioned for a high-five. She grinned and granted it.

"Your turn, Koichi!" Takato shouted. Now Koichi stood over the edge, suddenly looking as hesitant as Jeri had been. Takuya and Cody joined Takato, chanting Koichi's name.

It didn't help. "I, uh... I don't know guys... me and gravity don't get along."

"You don't have to jump if you don't want to," said Koji.

Jeri was tempted to echo him. The boy who had just helped her over now looked more terrified than she ever had. Koichi searched for a dignified escape, only to settle on her. She simply nodded and offered back a reassuring smile. He took a deep breath and jumped.

Her smile vanished as Koichi's graceful leap turned into a somersaulting mess. He crashed into the pond with a full bellyflop. The other guys shielded their eyes from both the splash and the horror.

"Hey, watch it!" shouted Armadillomon from the shore.

Koichi surfaced safely, but he was wincing. "That stung," he muttered.

"You're right: gravity hates you," Cody said.

"Look out below! Guilmon interrupted them with a full-on cannonball, drenching everybody, including Armadillomon. That sent everybody back into a fit of laughs.

"You know, Jeri, for a second there I wasn't sure if you were gonna jump," said Takato.

"I had plenty of support!" Jeri replied cheerfully. She stole a quick look at Koichi. He was treading water behind Koji, but she caught him flashing a smile.

"Besides, I didn't want to spoil your fun," she added. "Thank you for inviting me."

Takuya grinned. "Hey, it doesn't take much to talk me into hanging with a girl in a swimsuit."

"Watch it," Takato replied, lightly splashing Takuya.

Floating on his back, Takuya said, "But you're always free to join us, Jeri. We have to do this more often if it stays this quiet."

"It's only quiet because the new kids went after Petaldramon instead of us." Takato paused to watch Guilmon dive after a fish. "But I sure don't mind getting a break."

"Speak for yourself. I'd have loved to take him down, especially after what he did to that village. I hope we get to see some action soon."

"I don't know." Takato smiled at Jeri. "I'm pretty happy here."

Jeri smiled back, but deep down she found herself agreeing with Takuya. Not because of the fighting; she hated the thought of Takato in danger. But his missions were her chances to spend time with Koichi, and the lack of them was leaving her restless.

She looked over at Koichi again, swimming around and staying close to his brother. She hated herself for wanting him so badly with Takato so close, but it was hard to resist. While nobody else noticed, the only reason either of them were able to jump was each other. This was how they ended up together in the first place.

While their affair was only a few months old, Jeri and Koichi had recognized their similarities for far longer. They both had once been raised by single parents, both ended up in family situations best described as "complicated," and both of their experiences in the Digital World were nothing short of miserable. It took forever for Koichi to be convinced that it was real, even after waking up to find his brother waiting. In both cases, while their fellow tamers/digidestined spoke about their adventures with enthusiasm, Jeri and Koichi found themselves with nothing to say.

It was hard to explain why she was so attracted to him, but she was; the sensation she felt watching the spray of the waterfall cling to his hair and bare chest confirmed that. Jeri still loved Takato, and the person he saw in her. Takato pushed her forward, beyond her past and instilling the kind of confidence she needed to do her job at the castle. But she knew she would never be able to overcome her history to truly be the woman Takato believed in. Koichi embraced and shared her past, just as she understood his. They were able to return to their broken, tainted selves without feeling alone. No matter how much Takato wanted to fix her, Jeri needed someone to admire the beauty in her cracks.

* * *

Matt Ishida and TK Takaishi did exactly what anyone would have expected of them. For TK, it was an act to protect Angemon; for Matt, his little brother. It was the last time anybody saw them.

The first two years back in the Digital World were hell for the digidestined. The world was corrupted, overwhelmed with all the demons they thought they had once eradicated. As much as they had learned to understand themselves and their partners, they were back to being lost children trying to live long enough to find a way out. This time, there were no terminals or magic doorways to send them home. They were demoralized, temperamental, and only staying together knowing they would never survive separation.

In a way, they were lucky the battle against Millenniummon was the low point. Both he and MagnaAngemon had the power to draw enemies into pocket dimensions; when those powers collided, the result was bound to be devastating. Sensing the danger, TK ran in after his partner. Matt, already caring for a beaten Tsunomon, followed. Izzy and Joe had to restrain Tai and Sora from following, and did so long enough for them to avoid being at the center of the deafening explosion. When it subsided, TK, Matt, and their partners were gone. Millenniummon was weakened, but still standing.

Mimi had the best view of the chaos of the moment. Kari fell to her knees, head clutched as darkness invaded her mind. Tai escaped Izzy's grip long enough to rush in, ready to attack the monster himself. Izzy caught up in time to rip the digivice out of his friend's hand. With that much rage, he knew what would have happened to WarGreymon if he hadn't. He ended up receiving that rage square in the jaw, but it was a small price to pay to prevent the situation from getting even worse. Sora continued to try to chase after Matt and TK, and Joe continued to hold her down, clutching her so tightly he cracked ribs. It was a sight Mimi could never forget. For years she would try.

Ultimately, it was her and Joe and Izzy's Digimon that held Millenniummon at bay long enough for Tai to recover, as he always did, and deliver the finishing blow. Izzy insisted there was no trace of lost data: Matt, TK, and their partners were out there somewhere. They needed such encouragement, even though Millenniummon's dimension-warping power complicated any search. Still, they tried, and made it their primary focus for another year until the first new team arrived.

This new group changed Tai's perspective. He realized they couldn't continue their aimless wandering through the wilderness and needed some stability. The power that Takato and the other tamers added gave them the strength needed to seize the castle.

As Mimi would learn, however, defending the castle had its own potential for tragedy...

"Mimi? Mimi?" Tommy's voice and his hand on her shoulder stirred her awake. Her eyes snapped open; she was back in the comfort of her kitchen. "Are you okay?"

Her cheeks reddened. "Sorry... I dozed off, didn't I?"

He smiled. "Usually you're really cute when you daydream. What's wrong?"

She shook her head. "I'm just... thinking too much." She couldn't share what Thomas had confided in her, and her thoughts had everything to do with it. As much as Mimi loved Tommy, she tended to be selective in what she shared with him, especially when it concerned Matt and TK. He was part of the first team to arrive in the Digital World knowing only the security of the castle. His team never knew the years of nomadic life and the fight to take it. That made all the difference.

"Need some fresh air?" Tommy asked. "Lunch is ready and Jeremy wanted to get in here and do some maintenance work before dinner. I don't know about you but I could go for a walk. No fair that Takuya and them are the only ones that get outside today."

Mimi smiled. Difference or not, he always knew how to keep her spirits up. "Sounds fabulous."

* * *

Kazu Shioda usually loved watching Marcus and Rika argue. It was as entertaining as anything he ever witnessed on patrol. This particular debate, however, had a direct impact on Guardromon, which took a lot of the fun out of it.

They had just finished clearing out an underground hideaway. The job was fairly enjoyable as far as dungeon crawls went, and though it was challenging enough to necessitate Rapidmon and Lilamon, it never felt risky. The debate that arose was what to do with the loot they discovered after scattering the last of the enemies.

For Marcus, it wasn't a debate at all. "We came all this way down here, of course we should take the treasure!" He slapped his hand on the gold trunk. It was half his height, cylindrical, sealed shut and weighed a ton.

Rika didn't see the debate either. "That's not why we did all that, gogglehead! Besides, what are we going to do with it? We already tried opening it and we can't take it with us."

"Oh, it's not that heavy." Marcus bent his knees and wrapped his arms around it. He pulled it about a foot before he lost his grip. He fell to the ground, but shrugged. "Piece of cake for Guardromon."

This was where Kazu felt compelled to join in. "But wait a second! He's already saddled with all our gear. Who's carrying that?"

"Not it!" shouted Terriermon, Agumon and Lalamon. All three of them looked at Renamon and smiled.

"I'm a fox, not a mule," Renamon protested.

"I'm a robot. I don't see the relevance," Guardromon said.

Yoshi shrugged. "Sorry, Rika, but I have to agree with Marcus. We're not treasure hunters, but there might be something important in there. If there's valuable data and we just leave it alone, we'll never hear the end of it from Thomas."

"Yeah! This is for science!" Marcus exclaimed, trying to get a high five from Yoshi. She just shot him an annoyed look.

"Well, it's two to two," Kazu said. "Henry, guess it's up to you."

Henry frowned, arms folded as he stared at the giant trunk. He was never going to impede the potential for discovery. Then again, he was also never going to do anything to get on Rika's bad side. He thought for a while and came up with an agreeable compromise.

* * *

Ryo Akiyama usually didn't get anyone knocking on the castle gate. Once he heard the loud rapping, he scaled the ladder to the lookout and peered over the wall.

"The hell?" he asked.

"Delivery for you!" Kazu said, grinning back. Behind him, MegaGargomon set the gold trunk on the ground.

Ryo shook his head repeatedly as he opened the gate and greeted him. "Kazu, you know how to open the front door."

He was met by a clipboard and a pen. "Sign here please," said Kazu.

"What is that thing?" Ryo asked, signing it. "And you're bringing it in, right?"

"Inside delivery costs extra." Kazu jumped into MegaGargomon's hands. "Besides, probably shouldn't open that inside in case it unleashes a demon lord or something. Call us when you find out what it is. We're really curious!"

MegaGargomon took off. Ryo stared at the trunk for a while, then sighed, turned around and walked back inside.

"Oh, Izzy!" he called.

* * *

Tommy Himi couldn't recognize this type of fruit, and its discovery put a halt to the walk. Anything that could offer a new flavor to the kitchen's recipes was worth exploring. He plucked a few off the vine, throwing most of them in a basket but holding one for examination. The skin was pale yellow with blue markings, waxy and certainly not edible. He really wanted to crack it open, but the rattling he heard when he shook it gave him pause. The inside seemed unusually hollow, clearly more seeds than fruit. He was going to have fun examining this.

"Hey Palmon, have you ever seen these before?"

Palmon looked at it and shook her head. "No. Usually I can identify all the fruit around here. Better be careful with that. It might not be safe."

While Tommy and Palmon obsessed over their find, Mimi sat in the sun. She didn't mind the interruption; she was still trying to grasp the possibility of finding Matt and TK. It inevitably drudged up the horrible memories of how they slipped away, and their first years in the Digital World. They shaped the original digidestined, making them grateful for what they now had and all too aware of how bad the place could be.

Most of the time, it was still easy enough to put it behind them. Only a direct confrontation with the ghosts could bring it all back. Now they wouldn't leave Mimi alone. Thomas was right; she couldn't tell Sora. If the news bothered Mimi, it would have tortured Sora, who already wrestled too often with losing her lover. She could probably talk to Joe. He could put it in some sort of perspective. Even at his most pessimistic, he would always find some kernel of truth for her to pounce on.

She turned around and looked at her partner, who still analyzed the strange objects dangling from the tree. Telling Palmon was a given, of course, but that only achieved so much. Even Palmon couldn't totally understand. That was the biggest tragedy of them all...

Above them, hiding in the trees, were a pair of Flymon, watching Tommy and Palmon closely.

"What's that human taking out of our tree?" asked one.

"Who cares? It's our tree. He can't steal from our tree," answered the second.

"Maybe somebody should explain that to him."

"Or maybe we should just take back what's ours..."

* * *

Kari Kamiya's hands flew the moment she heard the exchange through her headset. She brought up enough information on her monitor to confirm the worst: "Thomas, someone's getting attacked."

"Of course they are," Thomas grumbled. "How heavy a response do we need?"

"Two Flymon. And it's..." she gasped. "Mimi and Tommy are out there. Better get them out fast."

"Is Palmon with them?"

"Yes, but-"

Thomas sighed. "That shouldn't be too bad then. She can hold them off until Yolei gets there.

"That won't be enough." Kari grabbed Thomas's wrist, eyes steeled on him. "You should send Takuya."

"Takuya and the others are out," he replied. "But Palmon and Hawkmon should be sufficient. If you disagree, maybe you should go too so Silphymon-"

Kari squeezed his wrist tighter. "You don't understand. We need to get over there now."

"What's going on?" Tai asked, looking over their shoulders.

"Mimi and Tommy are about to be ambushed," Thomas explained. "Yolei's the only one here, but combined with Palmon-"

Tai and Kari looked at each other, sharing the same uneasy gaze. "Never mind Yolei. Get a hold of Takuya. Send all those guys over there immediately." Kari nodded and her hands flew again.

Thomas turned around, narrowing an eyebrow at Tai. "I didn't exactly approve of their day trip, but I also didn't want to interrupt it. I know Mimi and Palmon don't usually fight, but you should have more faith in..."

He stopped when Tai glanced at him, just for a moment before returning to Kari. Thomas realized something horrible: "That sounds like something you'd normally say to me. Commander..." Tai faced him again. "What's wrong with Mimi?"

* * *

Cody Hida was thankfully close to his D-Terminal when it went off. He never could stand the water for too long, so he was on land and received Kari's message quickly. He flagged down Takuya, Koji and Takato and got them out of the lake and dressing. In the meantime, he looked over the coordinates Kari sent him. "It's only a couple kilos south of here."

"Is it close enough to the river for Submarimon?" Takuya asked, throwing a shirt on.

"For the first half. Should I go now?"

"Yeah." Cody armor digivolved Armadillomon and hopped inside, taking off as Takuya continued barking orders. "I'm going to fly ahead. Takato- take KendoGarurumon as soon as you're in a clearing."

"This better be important," Koji huffed, frantically tying his shoes.

Takuya shook his head. "You're telling me... Execute- Beast Spirit Evolution!" BurningGreymon took to the air and flew south.

Takato looked around as Koji and Guilmon started to run. They had scattered food, towels, baskets and other accessories everywhere. Nobody had completely dressed, and pairs of shorts, socks and underwear were still lying everywhere.

He looked at Jeri and Koichi, both still floating in the water. "Go," Jeri said. "We'll clean up."

"Thanks." Takato forced a grin and ran after Koji and his partner.

It took a minute for either Koichi or Jeri to move. It all happened so suddenly; even on a supposed day off, the response team was conditioned to drop everything and fight on a moment's notice. They had to marvel at that before realizing they were alone and stuck with packing duty.

Koichi was the first to move, swimming to shore and about to pull himself up when Jeri wrapped her hands around his stomach. From behind, she whispered, "Where are you going?"

"I was, uh..." The way she worded it, and the way he felt with her wet body pressed against him, he did feel silly. Not that he didn't have reservations: "Remember what happened last time we were out in the open?"

"Sorry, but look around." Koichi turned and admired the waterfall, the cliffs surrounding it, and the foliage that lined the impossibly clear pond. He had always appreciated how pretty it was, but now saw it all as accents to the beauty of the girl holding him.

"Wow," he said, suddenly breathless.

"Are you passing this up?" she said, squeezing him tighter and going in for the kiss. He didn't need to answer.

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa knew they were in trouble the moment they heard the deafening buzzing from the Flymon. She, Palmon and Tommy sprinted away as fast as they could, but there was no outrunning the pair of angry insects. One slashed at Palmon with its talons, knocking her over. She rolled away in time to avoid Flymon's poisonous stinger.

"Palmon!" Mimi stopped and turned around. Only Tommy pulling her to the ground prevented a stinger from hitting her as well.

"Poison Ivy!" Even from the ground, Palmon was able to get her attack off, forcing her opponent away long enough to get to her feet.

Even as she and Tommy were struggling to avoid the attacks targeting them, Mimi shouted, "Palmon! Be careful!"

"Mimi, what are you waiting for?!" Tommy shouted. Palmon tried to hustle back to them, but was never going to make it. Not with one Flymon pursuing her and the other one hovering between her and her partner.

Mimi clutched her digivice, staring at Palmon. She never noticed the Flymon shoot another stinger at her. Palmon did, leaping forward, screaming her partner's name as she began to glow.

"Palmon digivolve to..." The glowing stopped. Palmon remained, losing her balance.

Tommy jumped in, blocking the stinger with the basket. "What's wrong?"

"It's... it's not going to work," Mimi mumbled, hiding behind Tommy, clutching his shoulders. Palmon again narrowly dodged the other Flymon's attack and used her Poison Ivy to fling it away.

A loud crackle came from Tommy's D-Tector. "Tommy? Are you getting this?" It was Takuya's voice, or more accurately BurningGreymon's.

Flymon lunged at them. Tommy dove out of the way in time, but it tackled Mimi to the ground. He dropped the basket and grabbed his D-Tector; as much good as it did him, he was tempted to throw it at Flymon to get him off her. "Where are you? We need help!" he shouted back.

"We're almost there," BurningGreymon replied. "Hope this'll work for now."

Tommy looked at the display; the spirits of ice were inside. He couldn't help but grin as he shouted, "Execute- Spirit Evolution!"

It had been months since the last time he had done it, and in spite of the circumstances he was giddy as he felt himself transform into Kumamon. He held up his snow launcher and opened fire. His Blizzard Blaster attack knocked the Flymon away just before it could sting Mimi. She was scratched and bleeding, but at least she wasn't poisoned.

"Crystal Freeze!" A second attack from Kumamon kept the second Flymon at bay long enough for Palmon to get to her feet and run to Mimi. She pulled her partner up. "Let's get out of here!" Kumamon shouted. "I don't know if I can beat both of them."

Mimi was too injured to pick up Palmon so their attempted escape was too slow to work. Kumamon provided as much cover fire as he could, but the Flymon unleashed a cloud of dust that debilitated him. The Flymon caught up, and all Mimi could do is clutch Palmon and shudder.

"Pyro Barrage!" A rapid fire of bullets stopped the Flymon in their tracks. BurningGreymon flew between them and Kumamon. Already the Flymon were backpedaling, but unleashed more poison powder to weaken their new opponent.

KendoGarurumon arrived in time to prevent them from taking advantage. Takato and Guilmon jumped off and rushed to Mimi and Kumamon respectively.

"Are you all right?" Takato asked.

Mimi shook her head, still squeezing Palmon.

"It's all right Mimi," said Palmon. "I don't blame you."

Once KendoGarurumon fired his lasers past the Flymon, they realized they were outgunned and retreated. Along the way, they ran into Cody and Digmon. Digmon prepared to engage them, but they flew higher and past them. Cody didn't give chase. Instead, he continued towards the others. Along the way, he found the basket Tommy had dropped.

Tommy, meanwhile, had returned to his human form along with Takuya and Koji. He returned his spirits and stretched his arms out. "Thanks for the save, guys."

"That wasn't too hard," Koji replied. "Sure you couldn't have handled that?"

"Hey, I'm not jumping into Korikkakumon cold. Who knows what would have happened?" He turned around and asked, "But what happened with you, Mimi? Why couldn't Palmon evolve?"

She didn't answer. She was on her knees embracing Palmon. Her eyes were closed.

"Mimi?" Takato hesitantly extended a hand, reaching for her shoulder.

"Just... just leave me alone," she mumbled.

"Well, we can't just leave this alone," Takuya said. "You're the one with the Digimon out here. You're supposed to be looking out for Tommy, not the other way around. What would have happened if I hadn't gotten him his spirit in time?"

"Not to mention the fact that we were trying to take the day off," Koji added.

Takato shot Koji a disapproving look. "Really guys? She's hurt. We need to get her back to the castle."

Takuya threw up his hands. "We're just saying everybody who heads out is supposed to be able to defend themselves. Now we find out Mimi can't."

"Can this wait? Seriously?"

"Fine, but we're not done with this. I know how Command's gonna react to this, and it's not going to be good enough."

Takato shook his head. Mimi seemed oblivious to the conversation. She was too focused on Palmon.

* * *

Koichi Kimura found the walk back to the castle more strenuous than he expected. One round with Jeri had been enough for him. Tremendous as it was, it felt like a waste of that environment. But he wanted to get back to avoid arousing any suspicion. As they struggled to haul back the baskets, blanket and cooler, he came to realize another reason.

Their moments together were often somber. There had always been a sense of peace when they were together, but rarely would he ever describe it as joy. Part of it was because of the past; as much as it united them, and as much as it helped to have someone to share it, it also lingered overhead whenever they were together.

Guilt was the other factor. Jeri never explicitly called it cheating, but it was hard to describe it as anything else. She was in a committed relationship with another person, and this was the secret affair that nobody could know about. No matter how much relief and fulfillment their intimacy created, it was still dishonest. Koichi liked Takato, and obviously so did Jeri, and he didn't deserve what they were doing to him. Koichi knew she wrestled with it enough, but now he was beginning to feel it as well.

He didn't like sneaking around. He didn't like feeling they had to capitalize on every opportunity they were afforded. After Tommy caught them, Koichi didn't like forcing him to keep their secret. More than anything, he didn't like their inability to be public about it. He would have liked nothing more than to be open about it, to be seen together, and to accept everyone's congratulations and blessings. All this was beginning to hang over the delight of being with the girl he loved.

He was nervous broaching the subject. "Um... how long are we going to keep doing this?"

"Doing what?" Jeri replied.

"Hiding from everybody. Scrambling for time together. Trusting others to keep this secret." He shook his head. "We shouldn't be doing this."

"I know. I just can't bear to tell Takato. It would destroy him."

"It would destroy him more if he found out some other way. And eventually he will find out."

She closed her eyes. "I don't like to think about that."

"I can't help it. He doesn't deserve what we're doing to him. He's too good for this."

Jeri remained silent for a while, then turned around and walked backwards so she could look at Koichi. "I'm not," she said. She faced forward again. "He keeps saying I'm a wonderful person. I want him to think that as long as possible."

"It's true." Koichi rushed forward and took her hand. "You are wonderful. And you know you shouldn't be doing this. And it's only a matter of time before it'll have to stop."

Jeri turned back around, keeping her hand in his. She kissed him, closing her eyes and holding it for ages. After she released, both hand and lips, she resumed walking without a word.

Koichi followed. He didn't know what she was going for with that kiss. In fact, it worried him deeply. He just enjoyed it too much to say anything.

* * *

Izzy Izumi cringed as the team effort from Kabuterimon and Cyberdramon got the trunk inside the walls of the castle. After finally prying it open and determining that whatever it contained was not going to devour the world, he wanted it inside. The middle of the courtyard was still not its final home.

"I guess that's good for now," he said, not satisfied that it was completely out of the way but not wanting to find out if Digimon could get hernias. Kabuterimon turned back into Tentomon and Cyberdramon flew back over the wall to roam the surrounding wilderness as he usually did.

Izzy approached the trunk, tablet computer and multi-connection adapter in hand. "Now, let's see what we've got in here."

"Whatever it is, it needs to go on a diet," Tentomon added.

"No kidding," said Ryo.

Izzy looked back. He hadn't realized Ryo was following him. "Ryo, thanks for your help, but I think I can do the rest."

Ryo shrugged. "I signed for it. I'm part of this now."

Turning a light on his computer, Izzy looked inside the trunk. The walls were lined with some sort of thick padding and what appeared to be a giant black tablet pressed up against them. Izzy handed his pad to Tentomon and reached in, barely able squeeze his hands inside. He found a groove in the tablet and pressed his fingers against them and applied pressure. To his surprise, he felt a slight budge.

"No way..." he mumbled.

He struggled to get any further momentum, frustrated as he now had a theory about what it could be. Then he felt the whole tablet above the groove lift. Izzy found Ryo next to him, helping lift the object out of the trunk. Once it popped out, it was obvious what was inside.

Obvious to Izzy, at least. "The hell is it?" Ryo asked.

"It's a server."

"A server?"

"It's filled with prodigious amounts of data. We're talking about petabytes in here!"

"Data of what?"

Izzy set the server on top of the trunk. "Who knows? We'll have to tap into it to find out. It could be historical records, the composition of this world... " Then he shrugged. "Or for all we know it could all be a collection of baseball statistics."

"Too bad we can't go back in time and place bets," Ryo joked.

Izzy scratched his chin. "Well, supposedly you are a time traveler." He took his computer back from Tentomon and tried to find a port compatible with his adapter.

He didn't notice Joe approaching them, asking, "What do you have there?"

"It's either the secret to explaining the world or the on base percentages of everyone on the Giants," Ryo quipped. He noticed the large first aid kit Joe carried. "What's up, doc?"

The castle gate opened, answering his question. Imperialdramon flew in, carrying its partners, Mimi, Tommy, Palmon and most of the response team. Joe ran up to Mimi as soon as they all jumped off. Ryo ran up to Takato. Izzy kept trying to connect to the server.

"Where are you hurt?" Joe asked, trying to spot her scratches.

"Joe, do we have to do this here?" Mimi replied, looking back at Takuya. He and Koji were explaining what had happened to Ryo. They were all watching her.

"Considering what we were facing, it's not too bad," Tommy explained.

"It doesn't hurt," Mimi said. "I just want to-"

Cody interrupted them. "Maybe you should head to Medical and double check." He stared at Mimi. "In private."

Mimi was taken aback. "Cody! What are you-" Cody frowned, gesturing towards Takuya and Koji. She figured it out. "Oh, right." She turned to Joe. "Better make sure everything's bandaged up before dinner."

Joe ushered Mimi away. Palmon thought about going with, but saw Izzy working in the corner, oblivious to everything. She walked up to him and said, "I already said this to Davis, but thanks for sending everybody out to save us in time." She looked down. "And for understanding-"

"Wait, what happened?" Izzy was staring back at her, a concerned look on his face. "I was out here the whole time." He looked around; Imperialdramon had split back into Veemon and Wormmon, but Takuya was still having a long talk, now with Davis and Ken. Davis was nodding along, but adding an occasional shrug. Ken just kept looking down at his partner.

"We got ambushed by some Flymon," Palmon explained. "Takuya saved us just in time."

"Did you try to..." Izzy stopped; Palmon's frown answered his question.

"Takuya's giving Mimi a really hard time over it." Palmon sniffled. "I feel so helpless."

Izzy looked at the front doors. Mimi was long gone, but he set his instruments down and rushed inside.

Tentomon hovered down and picked up Izzy's tablet. "A little slow to catch on, but he's definitely getting better. Especially compared to that first time on File Island."

"File Island?" Palmon looked at Tentomon. "Where's that?"

* * *

Takuya Kanbara knew he would be paged to Command for a debriefing. He was happy to give it. He just knew it wasn't going to be of any consequence. He was also dying for a drink. Being a big damn hero took a lot out of him.

Part of the kitchen was self-service for people to get drinks, snacks or instant meals without having to bother Mimi or Tommy. They were supposed to keep it stocked. As if Mimi hadn't annoyed Takuya enough already, it was devoid of anything potable but a few condiment bottles and some disgusting iced tea that made him nauseous. And of course the main kitchen would be closed until Mimi and Tommy returned.

Luckily, Sora walked out of it. "Oh, hey!" Takuya said. "Could you go in there and get me a-"

"We're out of juice," Sora replied, anticipating the question and looking at a clipboard.

"All juice?"

"All juice and all the soda that people actually drink." She looked up at him and shrugged. "River shipment is coming tomorrow morning." With a grimace, she added. "Breakfast could be rough."

Takuya grumbled and sat down at the only table in the room. "Is there fruit in there? Any chance you can make a smoothie or something? I'm parched."

"I'd love to help," Sora said, with no sincerity. "But I'm trying to finish inventory before Mimi and Tommy get back. It's so much easier when they're not here." She gestured towards the main kitchen area. "Zoe's in there if you want to talk her into it."

"Zoe?" Takuya raised an eyebrow. Sora hid a grin as she walked past him to check one of the cupboards.

He didn't get an explanation as Izzy burst into the room. "Is Mimi back?" he asked, looking around frantically.

"Not yet," Sora answered plainly. She didn't see the look of worry on his face. Takuya did, and just shook his head. Sora only noticed it when she turned around. It carried over to her face instantly. "What's wrong?"

"You didn't hear? She and Tommy were attacked."

"Oh my God." Sora sat down near Takuya. "Are they okay?"

"They're fine," Takuya muttered. "We got out there in time to save them. Mimi's with Joe getting treated for her broken nail or whatever."

Sora sighed in relief. "Thank you, Takuya." She turned to Izzy. "Was Palmon with her?" Izzy gave her a slow nod. Takuya shook his head. "Did she try to..." She trailed off; she already knew.

"I didn't realize it was public knowledge that Palmon can't evolve," Takuya spat. He glared at both of them. "Why are you letting that slide?"

Izzy looked down. "When a Digimon is reborn, the process starts over. You wouldn't understand how hard it is to start from scratch."

Takuya wasn't buying it. "Oh, how many years has it been since the attack? Don't tell me that's not enough time!"

The door opened and Mimi and Tommy walked through, Mimi with a bandage around her right leg. Much as she wanted to continue on to the kitchen, she stopped when she saw the three waiting for her.

Joe followed behind her. "Seriously, I don't know if you should cook tonight. If one of those cuts opens up-"

"Is she back?" Tai practically shoved Joe through the door so he and Kari could get in.

"Great, the gang's all here!" Takuya gloated.

Tai looked around. He was surprised to find Sora and Izzy waiting. Between himself, Kari, Joe and Mimi... "Takuya, why aren't you upstairs for debriefing?"

"Why aren't you?"

Everyone's eyes turned to him. "Takuya..." Izzy said, eyes widening.

Tai held a hand towards Izzy, but still stared at the other goggle boy in the room. Calmly, he answered, "Because Mimi's our friend. We wanted to make sure she was all right."

"Is that why you let her get by without being able to fight?" Takuya stood up, staring at Tai. "I thought you said we're all supposed to be able to step in if there's a crisis. Why does she get a pass?" He gestured to Tommy. "Tommy stepped up. He's the only reason they're still alive."

Tommy couldn't help but grin a little at Takuya's praise, but he didn't like all the eyes that turned his way. He didn't want to be used in an argument insulting Mimi and turned away from the attention.

"Aren't you being a little hard on Mimi?" Joe scolded, an arm around Mimi's shoulder.

"So what?! Did you guys forget what hard feels like?" Takuya looked around at all the digidestined in the room. "Look, I know what you guys had to go through when you got here, but that shouldn't give you a free pass. Not when you've got me, and Marcus, and now Mikey out there still putting our lives on the line. How long's it been since you heard from Mikey?" He glared at Kari. "And you're down here worrying about Mimi instead of waiting for him to call?"

Izzy took a step forward and started to raise a hand, but Takuya continued, "You guys think the hard part's over." He shook his head. "It isn't. It's never over. Whatever started when you guys got here... we're still fighting. All of us. Whether you like it or not."

Takuya kept his focus on Tai, but the commander kept a straight face, not fighting back but not returning anything resembling agreement either. Izzy and Kari stared at Tai eagerly, pleading for a response. Mimi was now sitting against the wall, staring at the floor while Joe did whatever he could to offer reassurance. Next to them, nobody had noticed that the door to the kitchen was open. The reaction Takuya wanted came from there.

"Some of us are done fighting, Takuya," said Zoe. She stepped into the room as Jeremy occupied her vantage point from the doorway. "I don't care what some of you are still going through. I don't care if we still have something to achieve here." The closer she got to Takuya, the more emotional she became. "I don't even care if you expect all of us to be able to step in. Everyone has a breaking point. Some of us have hit ours already."

There was a long silence as Takuya and Zoe stared at each other. He was still steaming, but lost for a way to respond to someone he was far closer to. Tai turned to Izzy and Kari and gestured for them to leave. Only Izzy followed him out.

Takuya finally spoke, slowly shaking his head. "You're really going to try to defend them?" His voice was calm, more disappointed than angry. "C'mon, Zoe, what's wrong with you?"

Zoe, meanwhile, was plenty angry. "What's wrong with me?! You think we should all be able to pick all that up again in an instant, and just be ready to fight? To kill? To risk being killed?!"

"Yes!" he said, louder. "Because that's what they're asking us to do. We're supposed to be in this together. Jeez, who's side are you on?"

"Side?" Jeremy blurted, looking around, confused. "What sides? Aren't we all on the same side?"

"I don't know anymore," Takuya spat, still glaring at Zoe. "Man, first the thing with JP, now this. I always thought we were such good friends. But if this is how you're gonna start acting, then..." He turned around and walked to the exit.

"Takuya!" Zoe pleaded, reaching for him.

"Forget it! I have to give my report." He slammed the door behind him.

Nobody moved at first. Joe still comforted Mimi, who still stared at the floor. Tommy watched both her and Zoe, not sure who to be more worried about. Kari chose Zoe, but wasn't sure how to help.

Sora tried anyway. "Are you okay?"

"I..." Zoe tried not to burst into tears right there. "...I don't know."

With a gentle hand on Zoe's shoulder, Sora said, "Thanks. It means a lot." Sora continued to Mimi, putting both hands on her shoulders. "How about you?"

Mimi didn't look up. "Did I let everyone down?"

"Of course not."

"It's not your fault, Mimi," Tommy said.

"Mimi?" Zoe asked. "Do you want me to take care of dinner tonight?" She dried her eyes with her arm. "I can take care of it if you wanted to rest."

"Are you going to be okay?" Joe asked her.

"I just want to keep busy and take my mind off this. And I feel bad that Takuya's treating you this way."

Mimi nodded. "Thank you." She stood up and slowly walked out. Joe and Sora followed her.

It only left Kari. She couldn't take her eyes off Zoe, staring back sadly.

"What?" Zoe asked, the fire she had against Takuya suddenly emerging again.

Kari opened her mouth, but nothing came out at first. Finally, she said, "Did you want me to send Davis down? Make it a proper noodle night?" It was the slang for the nights Mimi and Tommy took off. Both Zoe and Davis were very capable at making pasta... and nothing else.

"I can still help," Tommy said.

"That's all right. But thank you," Zoe told Kari, far kinder.

As Kari returned to her post, Zoe and Tommy entered the kitchen. Jeremy was still inside, and still a little frantic. "Okay, I'm confused. What was all that about?"

Tommy excused himself to start prep work while Zoe explained, "Mimi lost her Digimon. It was a huge attack on the castle, right after we first got here. Palmon came back, but..." She sighed. "It was never the same. Mimi just couldn't bring herself to fight anymore."

Jeremy scratched his chin. "I don't see why that's such a big deal. Pretty brave of you to stand up to Takuya like that though."

Zoe fell forward, arms slamming against a countertop. Now the tears streamed out. "It's not being brave at all. I should have just let him get it out of his system." She shook her head. "Why should I have to stick up for all of them?"

"Well, why did you?" Jeremy almost reached for her shoulder, but hesitated.

"I... I felt like I had to. I'm the same as Mimi. My Digimon died."

Jeremy's eyes widened. "Wait, but I thought..."

Zoe sniffled, tears subsiding momentarily. "Well, maybe not died. But she might as well have." She turned around, leaning back and half-sitting on the counter. "Before Keenan got here, I used to do the scout work. Kazemon was fast, and Zephyrmon had a little punch to her. Just... just not enough. One day, some enemy Digimon found my location. It was an ambush."

Hands shaking, she continued, "I almost died that day. Joe said I was lucky Takuya and Koji got to me in time. I used to have nightmares about it. Almost every night. And I just couldn't bring myself to spirit evolve again." She sighed. "At least now, the nightmares aren't about me. They're about someone that isn't me anymore."

Jeremy joined her on the counter. "So you're done fighting too then?" She nodded. "Well then of course you're going to stick up for Mimi! Why should Takuya have a problem with that?"

Zoe bit her lip. She looked at him and put a hand on his cheek. "You really haven't seen it? You are new."

"What?"

"We aren't as unified as Tai lets on. We all want different things, we all want to do them our way. We're all different people, from different groups with different experiences. We're never going to see eye to eye on everything. But Command is pretty set on the way things are run here, and there's not much we can do to challenge their decisions."

She shrugged. "We could leave, I suppose, but that only makes things harder for everybody. And Takuya's right; there's still a lot of danger out there." Hopping off the counter, she resignedly said, "So we just keep doing things the same way. Takuya disagrees the most with Command, but the other groups don't seem to have as much of a problem with it." Her shoulders slumped. "That only means he takes it really personally when his own teammates disagree with him."

"That's not your fault!" Jeremy leaped off and stood in front of her. "Just because he's a little annoyed doesn't give him the right to treat you like that!"

Zoe looked away, startled at his outburst. "You don't understand. Takuya and I-"

"Takuya doesn't deserve you," he interrupted, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You need to stop thinking it's the end of the world if he stops liking you. You're too good for that. Let other people like you." Quieter, he said, "Let me like you."

Her eyes grew wide, cheeks turning slightly red as Jeremy continued to stare back. There was no blush on his face, just the intense stare that he often wore, many times without reason or intention.

"Like... you?" she whispered.

"I spend enough time with JP to hear all the great things he says about you. But I look at you now and... the girl that he's talking about doesn't deserve to be in this much pain."

She trembled, not sure what to make of the sudden advance. Her first thought was to resist it, and dismiss him like every other boy who thought befriending her was the first step to romantic conquest. But after what Takuya said to her, and how much sense Jeremy was making, she was powerless to move. He stared into her eyes, closing his as he leaned forward. She shook, but she didn't resist his approaching lips.

They didn't meet. Tommy's coughing stopped them. "Sorry, but I'm done barging in on that stuff." Jeremy stepped away from Zoe as Tommy approached them, carrying one of his findings from the tree. "Water's starting to boil. There's enough packaged stuff in there so we don't have to make our own." He held out his hand. "Oh, and I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to try to use this thing somehow. I gotta figure out what it is."

As he shook it, Jeremy smiled and approached him. "Oh hey, can I have some of that? I missed lunch.

"Well, I should make sure it's safe to eat..."

Jeremy snatched it away. "What, digibytes? You've seriously never had these?" To Tommy's horror, Jeremy opened the box and ate a handful of the tiny chips inside before handing it back. With his mouth full, he added, "You're missing out. These are great."

"Wait..." Tommy ate one and narrowed an eye. "...these grow on trees? That's crazy."

With an eyebrow raised, Jeremy replied, "Says the kid who turns into a bear."

* * *

Tai Kamiya waited patiently as Takuya delivered his report. He didn't comment when Takuya railed on Mimi's shortcomings, or how grateful he was that Tommy was able to use his spirit. He let Thomas ask the questions and let him record the answers however he preferred. When they finished, Thomas excused Takuya and left the room.

Takuya didn't move. Instead, he turned to Tai. "I'm not really done here, am I?"

"Was that really necessary?" Tai asked, staying calm. "Take it up with Thomas. Take it up with me. I get that we had to pull you from your day off to save her, but there are better ways to deal with it. You don't need to attack Mimi, not after what she just went through. Not in front of all of us."

"I'm frustrated, okay?" snapped Takuya. "I don't care about getting called while we were out. I don't mind fighting. My problem is when someone like Mimi thinks she can get away with never fighting. Where the hell does she think she is? What happens if the castle gets attacked again? What if Marcus misses something and we end up with real trouble?"

"Then I jump in. Or Davis or Thomas. Or anybody else. I would never force anybody to fight. Remember that some of us didn't sign up for all this."

"You're really siding with her? She nearly gets herself and Tommy killed and you're siding with her?" Takuya shook his head. "I don't believe that. You need to stop protecting your friends and actually think about what's going on. Deep down, I bet you agree with me."

Tai gritted his teeth, trying not to show the anger that Takuya wanted. His teeth were still clenched when he answered, "What's wrong with protecting my friends? That's more important than anything." He sighed, settling down. "And I didn't say I wasn't going to do anything. If Mimi isn't willing to let Palmon fight, then it's not really in the spirit of having a Digimon when we leave the castle. I'll tell her that."

Takuya nodded, but Tai wasn't finished. "I also want you to give Tommy his spirits back if you're not using them. If he's willing, we should make sure he's comfortable using his beast spirit just in case."

"Is that it then?" It wasn't the satisfying rebuke against Mimi that he was hoping for, and it didn't make him feel any better, but it fixed the immediate problem and Takuya had nowhere to complain. That's what he hated most about Tai: Takuya knew there was still a reckless hothead in there somewhere, but he doubted he'd ever see it.

With no answer from Tai, Takuya stood and headed out. "One more question," said Tai, freezing Takuya. "Are you happy here?"

Takuya looked down. He knew the answer, but he had to think about his response: "Tai, we got pulled out of our regular lives to end up stuck here for how many years? And we're not doing anything to try to get back home." He shook his head. "How can any of us be happy?"

* * *

Keenan Crier finished retrieving the necessary information and jumped on Falcomon to get out of there. It was a surgical operation as always; he completed it without being noticed. He had to admit the Ninjamon costumes Nene had fashioned for him and his partner were very useful in avoiding suspicion.

Falcomon glided off the cliff, across the shoreline, and into the ocean, landing atop Deckerdramon. He and Keenan boarded Sparrowmon, who took off. Keenan looked down; Deckerdramon vanished the moment they left.

It was an elaborate way to avoid detection, but Mikey wasn't taking chances. The castle Sepikmon had led them to was built for combat. Its dark gray walls extended high into the air, surrounded by a twenty-foot long moat that only supplemented its natural defenses. It was built in a narrow mountain pass, on an isthmus between two oceans. Depending on the sort of forces inside, getting through or getting in would be as hard as defeating any Dark General.

Keenan arrived and delivered his report. As Mikey feared, it was bad: dozens of aerial troops, long range units manning the parapets, and just enough heavies inside to give any invaders second thoughts. Whoever was inside had an army. Mikey could only guess their intentions.

"Not all," Keenan said, looking around and hoping no one would correct his grammar. "I could smell it from inside. Falcomon too."

He started at Mikey, making sure the newcomer would appreciate the significance of what he was about to say: "Humans."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 9: "I Won't Let It Die"**  
The other officers try to convince Thomas to agree to a risky raid on the mysterious castle. Kari attempts to understand Zoe better while Izzy's investigation of the mysterious trunk gives Koichi a chance to redeem himself.

" _I want to say to hell with it and agree with Tai. But I can't. The data's right there. Like it's mocking me."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** The backstory of the digidestined and their first couple years in the castle is surely very captivating, especially as we learn more about how much they fought with each other. It's something I feel like I should write, but it's so depressing that I've never really wanted to.

I do wish I had been able to expand on the logic behind Jeri and Koichi's relationship earlier. It's easy to vilify Jeri for cheating, but there is more going on that speaks to her character. It's best taken with an open mind, and we're not going to be siding with any one character in this mess.

As much as we all love the Mimi that's happy and social and loves pushing people's buttons, that's only half of her character. This gets to her other side that has a low threshold of how much violence she can witness before she breaks. To fully appreciate her character, it's important for both sies to be explored.

Given how hard it was for the Frontier team to fully control their beast spirits, it's natural that Tommy is apprehensive about becoming Korikkakumon cold.

WC2BAjEnmJw  
B005USR4JM


	10. 09- I Won't Let It Die

**Neverworld**

 _Your faith is slipping through your fingers. Hope's in short supply._  
 _Fear and pain are closing in to take away your pride._  
 _You can't relax and rest in peace. At least we have to try._  
 _I'm here to fight despite the odds so God help me 'cause I won't let it die!_  
 _\- Ugly Duckling, "I Won't Let It Die"_

 **Episode 9**

Sora Takenouchi didn't know what she had done to earn a summons to Command. Part of the reason she gave Jeri her old position of hospitality director was so she didn't have to deal with the upper management. Being friends with Izzy was easy enough; working under him at the same time was more challenging. She knew the beverage shortage had raised complaints, but it still was a problem for Jeri to answer.

"Do you know what this is about?" Sora asked Zoe in the elevator.

"Tai didn't give me any details," the blonde replied. "He just told me to come get you." Now Sora was worried.

She took a deep breath as she stepped out of the elevator. Kari was talking to someone over the radio, but stopped the conversation once she noticed Sora. Tai, Izzy and Davis were in the middle of their own discussion, which also ended instantly.

"Sora!" Tai said, excitedly bounding up to her. He grinned at her for several seconds before he announced, "We found them."

At first, she was just confused. "You found..." Then her eyes lit up. "No!"

"Everything we're hearing says they're in a castle near the next continent. So yes."

Sora clutched his arms, her smile matching his. "Really?" She was already getting choked up.

Izzy nodded. "Mikey heard a Sepikmon say they weren't the first humans he'd seen and followed him to the castle where Keenan confirmed a human presence. We've only registered the five other arrival events that brought everyone else here. We would have heard any others from anywhere in the world."

"And their castle is out of our communication range, which is why we never picked up on them before." Kari smiled. "This is really happening."

"That's wonderful." Sora pulled Tai into a deep hug. "Thank you."

Tai wrapped his arms around her, his smile somehow growing. He closed his eyes, taking in her joy. Her entire presence, actually.

A cough interrupted him. Thomas stood in the doorway to the meeting room, staring at Tai with a dour expression. Tai looked around. Izzy, Kari and Davis were still watching him and Sora. He pulled himself away from her, instantly defensive and blushing. "What?! This is a big deal. We can't react to it?"

Izzy snickered. Kari smiled and shook her head. Davis just rolled his eyes and muttered, "Stupid Tai."

Thomas wasn't amused. "Sora, please go back downstairs. Zoe, please take over for Kari."

Nobody was smiling now. Even Zoe was surprised by his stark tone. She shrugged at Sora as she returned to the elevator.

"The hell?" Tai said, turning to Thomas. "We just found Matt. You know he and Sora were together. I had to tell her."

Thomas waited for the elevator doors to close before responding. "No, and you shouldn't have." He looked his fellow officers. "I need all of you in here. Now."

The four of them complied, not sure why or the reason for Thomas's sudden attitude. Inside the meeting room, statistics, arrows and equations covered one of the walls. Davis and Kari didn't pay much attention to them as they sat down. Izzy, on the other hand, turned white.

"What's wrong?" Kari asked him.

He only shook his head. "Oh no... no no no..."

Tai fell into a chair on the other end of the marked wall. "Okay, what's going on? You think it's them too."

Thomas nodded. "Yes, but there's a problem. Their captors are ready for us. Based on the information Keenan provided, their armies are massive and explicitly designed to guard against a siege. Whoever has Matt and TK has no intention of letting them go."

None of this fazed Tai. "Okay, but Mikey's got a pretty strong team. Nothing they can't handle, right?"

"If it was just his team against the defending army in a fight to the end with no other factors, maybe. But the castle has many natural and constructed defenses they'd have to break through. We also have to worry about Matt and TK being used as hostages, or eliminated if we gain the upper hand. We couldn't handle an extended siege."

"Just..." Izzy's head was buried in his hands. It was shaking. "What are the odds?"

"A fair assessment puts Mikey's odds of successful retrieval at twelve percent." Thomas sighed. "I can't in good conscience approve this mission."

Tai looked at the other officers. Davis was irritated and shaking his head. He rubbed Kari's back, trying to hold off her tears. Izzy was having a panic attack.

"You're kidding, right?" Tai turned back to Thomas wearing half a grin. "You're not really going to pass this up because of some numbers, are you? I'm sure we've all beaten those odds before. It's Matt and TK we're talking about. It's worth it."

"Not if we're putting Mikey and his team in this kind of danger."

Tai shook his head. "He'd be willing. He'd do it in a second."

"He would. That's why we need to be responsible and not get him killed."

Looking at Izzy, Davis and Kari, Tai said, "You guys are with me right?"

"I don't know, Tai," Kari replied. "I'd feel pretty terrible if something happened to them on our watch."

Davis scoffed. "You're asking the wrong guy. Twelve percent sounds great to me."

"Hmm..." Tai grumbled. "Izzy, guess you're the tie breaker."

"This isn't a vote," said Thomas.

Izzy's eyes scanned the board rapidly. He understood everything Thomas had put up there, but it only troubled him further. His head fell and his fist clenched. "Everything Thomas said is correct. We can't do it."

"Oh, not you too!" Tai exclaimed. Izzy stood up and ran out of the room, head lowered. While Tai continued arguing with Thomas, Izzy sat down at his station, and leaned forward on his desk. As he realized there was no way to avoid it, he buried his head in his arms and cried.

"Uh..." Zoe had no idea what to do. Had Kari done the same thing, she probably wouldn't have reacted. Seeing any sort of emotion from Izzy froze her. "What's going on in there? What's wrong?" she finally asked.

He didn't respond, nor did he stop. The meeting room door opened again. This time Kari stepped out. She was morose, but not as emotional. She sat in Thomas's chair, leaned over, and held Izzy from behind, her chin landing on the back of his shoulder. She closed her eyes, but didn't speak.

"Why is it so hard to accept?" he said. "The numbers are right there. The only logical conclusion is that it's a bad idea. But..."

She held him tighter. "But you want to see them as much as we do."

"I want to say to hell with it and agree with Tai. But I can't. The data's right there. It's mocking me."

"It's awful, but I think we need to listen to Thomas." Izzy returned a sad nod.

"That's why you put him in charge of this sort of thing, isn't it?" Zoe said, doing her best to be sympathetic.

Izzy pulled his head up, taking a tissue from Kari and drying his eyes. "It is. He's more rational than Tai or Davis."

"Or me," said Kari. "He also isn't missing anybody." She sighed. "I just feel so helpless."

"There's no way to rescue them?" asked Zoe.

"It would be too reckless. It wouldn't be fair to Mikey," Izzy answered.

"Too bad there isn't a way to change the numbers," said Kari.

Izzy sat up, suddenly alert, eyes locked on his monitor's screensaver. He sat there, frozen in thought, for a minute.

"What's wrong?" Kari asked. Izzy turned her way with a distant look in his eyes. He put his hands on each side of her face. "Izzy?"

"Changing the numbers. That's genius," he said. Without warning, he popped out of his seat, grabbed Kari's hand and led her back into the meeting room.

Tai and Thomas were still arguing, but the lack of progress had turned it from a heated debate to a tiresome war of attrition. Neither wanted to continue, nor would they surrender. They were happy for the distraction of Izzy and Kari entering.

Izzy blurted his proposal: "All three teams. What does that do to the odds?"

Tai grinned. "Yeah, now we're talking!" Kari and Davis returned their own smiles; Kari squeezed Izzy's hand.

Thomas grimaced. "It's not unfeasible, but it's drastic... and does put us at risk defensively."

Slapping Thomas's back, Tai said, "We can hold the fort for a couple days. If anything's worth throwing the kitchen sink at, it's this."

"Hold on and let's see what this does."

Tai nodded and sat down with Izzy and Kari. He and Izzy exchanged a fist bump under the table.

Thomas only made a few notes on the board; there was no way he could have anything more than a ballpark figure with the others waiting and watching him. Most of the math was in his head.

When he was satisfied with his result, he turned around. The eager look on their faces made him frown just before he said, "It's still less than even. Forty to forty-five percent at best."

"Impossible!" Izzy shouted, standing up. "We just tripled our power. The advantage should be exponential."

"The hell do you have against getting them back anyway?" Tai asked.

Thomas only glared at Tai. He was too disgusted at the notion that he'd have an agenda to respond to it. Izzy, however, deserved an explanation: "Introducing multiple teams adds one major disadvantage and amplifies a second. The castle is out of our range of communication. We won't be able to provide any real-time data on what they're facing. And unless they expend some of their units to relay messages, we will be in complete radio silence until the operation is over."

"How is that any different with all three teams?" Izzy asked.

"How else will three teams effectively communicate with each other? More importantly, who will lead them?" Izzy's shoulders slumped immediately and he fell back into his chair. Thomas continued, "When it's just one team, it's easy enough to put Mikey in charge and tell him to figure it out. Multiple teams need to be coordinated and led. And Takuya and Marcus will not appreciate answering to someone who hasn't been here as long."

"Mikey probably doesn't even know what Takuya or Marcus are capable of," Izzy said.

Thomas shook his head. "Not to the degree we would need. Each team is successful because each leader knows how to get the most out of it. Mikey doesn't know anything about bio-merge. Our evolutions require us to unleash our emotions, but spirit evolution is about controlling them. And Takuya can't possibly understand digi-fuse. I can't trust any of them to command this operation."

"Well hell, let me do it." Everybody turned to Davis, who sounded far too casual about it. "What? I know what these guys can do. And Ken and I'll have to ferry them over there anyway. I got this."

Thomas narrowed an eye. "That may be the case for Marcus and Takuya's teams, but have you even seen a digi-fuse?"

Davis smirked and pointed at himself. "Uh, hello? Imperialdramon?"

Rolling his eyes, Thomas said, "That's a completely different process."

"Whatever. It's the same idea."

Izzy started to nod. "If anybody's going to appreciate digi-fuse, it would be Davis. The mechanics aren't the same, but they both work for the same reason."

"Do you know all of the forms Mikey's team tends to rely on?" asked Thomas.

"We'll get him a cheat sheet," said Tai. "Let's just do this."

"Come on, Norstein." Davis stood up. "This ain't some routine mission to stop this year's bad guy. This is for TK and Matt. You think I'm going to let everybody down? I'll make this happen. Don't slam the brakes on this just because you're afraid I don't know everything that goes into Shoutmon X6 or whatever? Roll the dice for once."

Thomas looked at his notes. Everything he had said about a centralized, capable general to coordinate three teams was true. This was now a question of whether they had one. In a way, he was thankful he didn't have to answer it.

"If somebody was able to lead all three units as one while still getting the maximum ability out of all of them, the odds increase by as much as fifteen percent. That puts us at above fifty." He looked at Tai. "Commander, is Davis able to do this and are you satisfied with the risk vs. the reward?"

Tai stood with a smile. Thomas struggled to hide his; Tai's answer was never in doubt: "Davis? Go get Matt and TK."

"Yes, sir," Davis said.

That didn't end the conversation, of course, and Thomas and Izzy made sure to feed Davis as much information as he could and develop an initial strategy. But Kari interrupted them. She wasn't letting Davis get too far into his planning without showing her appreciation through a deep embrace.

"Thank you for taking this on," she said. "I'm sure you'll do amazing."

Davis was happy to receive it, even kissing the top of her forehead. "Anything for you, Kari."

Izzy caught himself frowning. He had done just as much to push the mission forward, but Davis came across as the big hero. He knew none of that ultimately mattered, but as he watched the two he was alarmed at how jealous he was.

* * *

Takato Matsuki couldn't have been more excited about this mission. He was on board Imperialdramon with the rest of the response team, picking up the patrol team to rendezvous with the investigation team for the first joint effort in more than a year. Based on the attack strategy Davis and the rest of Command had developed, it would the first time he'd be working directly under Marcus, whom Takato had always admired as a strong leader. Most importantly, they were out to rescue Matt and TK.

He and the other tamers tried not to make a big fuss about meeting heroes from the old Digimon cartoon. It had come up, of course, but after people from multiple worlds started arriving, Izzy grew less concerned about it, at least compared to Ken's allegations about Ryo or this new Quartzmon business. Frankly, it had been so many years since any of the tamers had watched it that it didn't make as big an impression. Rika always claimed that she had never seen it at all. But part of him still held it close to his heart, and part of him had always been disappointed at never meeting Matt and TK. That part made Takato eager to help complete the team.

The same part made him worry about Takuya. He was having a rather terse conversation with Yolei. The plan pit them together as part of an aerial team and while they carefully worked their roles out, neither were enjoying it. There was uneasiness in their voices as they were careful not to stray off into more uncomfortable conversations. Takuya's recent criticism of the original digidestined had rubbed more than just his targets the wrong way. Takato, as one of their biggest fans, could only wonder how passionate Takuya was about retrieving two more.

It nagged Takato enough to make him want to say something. Yes his loyalty to the digidestined could never be questioned, but he was also close to Takuya. He may be able to reach an understanding better than someone like Yolei who was too closely tied to them. He sat next to Takuya as soon as he finished with her.

"So, uh, you ready for this?" Takato asked.

"You bet. This could be pretty epic." Takuya wasn't as boisterous as he usually was, but his nodding suggested sincerity.

"I'm sure you're loving the idea of a couple more digidestined." Takato hoped his sarcasm was on point.

It was, although Takuya leaned back, furrowing his eyebrows. "What do you mean? You think I don't want to rescue these guys?"

"No, no! I just know you have issues with the digidestined so-"

"Okay, first..." Takuya cut him off, holding up a finger. "I'm a digidestined too. They don't own that. Second, I may have my issues with Tai and Kari and Mimi, but I don't know these two. For all I know they're cool. Third, even if I knew they were total assholes I'm still gonna get them to safety. That's what we do."

Takato held up his hands. "Well yeah, of course! Wow, that came out wrong. I just didn't know if you were excited about all this."

Takuya leaned back, calmer. "Oh, yeah. Of course I'm excited." He snickered. "Just maybe not for the same reasons. This is the kind of stuff I want to be doing all the time. Tai and them got this one right. And if we take that castle, it's a foothold in a whole new continent. Command says there's nothing useful over there, but how do they know? Let's start exploring it."

"Is that a good idea? If we haven't been over there, it's probably in bad shape. And you know Command wouldn't want to push that far."

Takuya raised his eyebrows, grinning. "If this all goes right, it won't be Command's decision."

* * *

Nene Amano was directly above the castle, testing how high Sparrowmon could hover. She knew she was going to end up doing recon. She didn't think she'd have company.

"Aren't we too high?" Keenan asked. He and Falcomon seemed less comfortable aboard the birdplane than either Nene or the lone Monitamon that accompanied her. The second was with Davis at his command center. The third was in position to relay updates home.

Sparrowmon was not too high. Nene knew a siege on the castle was going to require a complex operation. Davis surprised everybody when he delivered a plan calling for an attack from four sides. Nene could see Deckerdramon in the water and the specks atop him that would digivolve to provide long-range support and assistance. She saw the likely beneficiaries of that assistance- the ground team tasked with charging at the castle with brute force. The third team was the reason for their elevation as Aldamon, Aquilamon and Rosemon prepared for an aerial battle. All of this drew forces away from a fourth team that would tunnel underground to sneak in and make the rescue.

Once Keenan saw everybody in position and Nene received confirmations from Mikey and Christopher over her squawker, she gave the signal to Yolei. Aquilamon flew down to Rosemon and Aldamon's level. Aldamon flew down even lower, in range to launch his attack.

"Atomic Inferno!" Fireballs rained down on the castle, impacting across the buildings and courtyards inside. Nothing caught fire, but it was surely enough to get the ball rolling. Aldamon added a second attack for good measure.

Whether it took the second attack or they just had a lousy response time, four dozen Airdramon and six Hippogriffomon emerged from the towers and charged upwards. Aldamon, Rosemon and Aquilamon fired on as many of them as they could. Deckerdramon took a few more from below, but the numbers were as bad as they feared. Nene was relieved Command refused to let the Fusion Fighters go alone.

"Keenan?" Falcomon asked his partner.

Keenan got a nod from Nene and shouted, "DNA Charge- Overdrive!"

"Spiral Raven Claw!" Ravemon swooped down to join the battle, taking a few more enemies down.

It was still overwhelming- a mad scramble that required constant movement from the four heroes. This made it impossible for Aldamon or Rosemon to get in their wide-area attacks. Even if they could, hitting all these enemies would have been impossible without risking catching Aquilamon in the crossfire.

Several minutes elapsed and of the enemies that made it up to their height, only a few Airdramon had gone down. After Rosemon used her thorn whip to take down one Airdramon tailing Aldamon, the spirit of fire flew up to Sparrowmon and returned to his human form.

"What's wrong?" Nene asked. Takuya was on his knees, panting.

"Too many of them," he said through staggered breaths. "Gotta go big."

"Do you need a-"

He leaped off Sparrowmon, holding his D-Tector as he fell. "Unity Execute! Unified Spirit Evolution!" EmperorGreymon dove back into the fray, sword at the ready.

It was too late. Short as his absence was, a Hippogriffomon capitalized, blasting a heat wave attack that knocked Aquilamon out of flight. Yolei tumbled over, but her partner was surrounded by Airdramon, unable to fly after her. Several shots later, Hawkmon was falling too.

"That's bad!" Keenan shouted. "Ravemon, help her!" Ravemon was too far away and too busy to hear him. Keenan tugged Nene's skirt. "What do we do?"

As much as Nene was concerned about Yolei, Aquilamon was going to be missed on the battlefield, as would anyone that tried to rescue them. She had to prioritize. "We replace them..." Her Fusion Loader was already out. "Reload! Beelzemon!"

As Beelzemon entered the fray, EmperorGreymon shook off his opponents and flew after Yolei. She saw it all as she fell. She was so stunned by the fact that she was plummeting that she didn't think to scream. She didn't know how long she had, but she was confident EmperorGreymon would reach her in time.

But then he stopped. Her eyes widened as he pulled up and returned to the battle. "Takuya..." she mumbled. She had assumed that somehow she would be saved. Now, for the first time, she actually thought she might die.

"Gotcha!" Instead, the rescue came from below. Rapidmon grabbed her, then kept flying up to snatch Hawkmon as well. He flew back to his station aboard Deckerdramon. The moment her feet landed, she leaped at Henry.

"Oh you saved my life!" She blurted, clutching her beau and peppering his face with kisses.

"Who saved your life now?" Rapidmon protested, dropping Hawkmon off with Cutemon.

"You are the best boyfriend ever!"

Henry struggled to get in a word between all of her pecks. "You know I was watching you guys in case anybody needed help. It wasn't just-" A deep kiss silenced him.

Kazu elbowed him in the shoulder. "Dude, it's free points. Just roll with it."

Finally, Henry gave up explaining and let her kiss him to her heart's content.

"Please no making out on my Digimon," said Christopher, folding his arms.

"Oh, Christopher, their hearts are true," rumbled Deckerdramon. "Let them go." Christopher grumbled; much as he wanted to, he was never allowed to argue with Deckerdramon again.

"Yeah, Christo, moumantai!" added Rapidmon.

* * *

Marcus Damon looked to the sky, waiting for his opportunity. Takato, WarGrowlmon and Beowolfmon were getting impatient.

"C'mon, we need to get going," said Beowolfmon.

"Ain't up to me," Marcus replied. "It's up to Rosemon."

Rosemon finally delivered, throwing an Airdramon in their direction. "Here we go!" shouted Marcus as he charged at WarGrowlmon, who catapulted him in the air in time to punch the Airdramon. He landed on WarGrowlmon's back, fist filled with DNA. "DNA Charge! Full Power!"

Agumon charged out of hiding, digivolved to RizeGreymon and flew towards the walls.

"That is the coolest thing ever!" Takato gushed. Beowolfmon rolled his eyes and followed RizeGreymon up the wall.

Several Mamemon atop the parapet blocked their ascent, raining down bombs and halting their momentum. While it kept Beowolfmon grounded, it wasn't such a big deal for RizeGreymon, who swatted away the attacks before flying to their level and launching one of his own. The Mamemon were surprisingly resistant, however, and still prevented him from getting a landing.

Meanwhile, Takato struggled to break through the front door. Both it and the wall were surrounded by a large moat, but it was the only way WarGrowlmon was getting through. Even an Atomic Blaster beam did nothing against the steel door. Takato looked up; RizeGreymon and Beowolfmon weren't making much progress scaling the wall. Given how important it was for them to draw out the heavies lurking in the castle, things were getting desperate.

Marcus leaped off RizeGreymon onto the parapet, but a MetalMamemon knocked him right off. RizeGreymon caught him, but he was still frustrated. "Hey Takato!" he shouted down. "If you're not having any luck down there, call out the big guy.

Takato smiled. "I was just thinking that." He raised an arm. "MetalGreymon!"

On loan from Christopher, MetalGreymon emerged from below a cliff and charged at the door, gliding over the moat. "Trident Arm!" His scorching metal claw pierced the door, but it didn't budge.

"Okay, we can handle this..." Takato mumbled, nodding at WarGrowlmon.

"Radiation Blade!" WarGrowlmon fired his arm blades straight at the crack MetalGreymon created. The crack grew, splintered, and one more punch from MetalGreymon did the rest

The destruction of the door rattled the walls as well, disrupting the Mamemon just long enough for Beowolfmon to run up the side and land on the parapet.

"Frozen Hunter!" One slash and two of the Mamemon were gone. RizeGreymon took out the rest.

"All right!" Marcus shouted atop RizeGreymon. "Courtyard here we come!"

Except it wasn't really a yard. Other than the interior buildings and a few thin walkways, the entire space within the walls was filled with water. The walkways separated it into several pools. Before they could guess how deep they were, multiple Seadramon sprang out of them.

"Uh... wasn't expecting that," Takato said as MetalGreymon ferried him across the outside moat. WarGrowlmon wasn't going to fit on those walkways.

Worse yet, the other walls still had Mamemon guards that started launching bombs at the attackers. Beowolfmon used his sword to strike down the initial volleys, then asked Marcus, "So what's the plan?"

Marcus only grinned. "Plan hasn't changed, Koji. Charge!"

* * *

Kari Kamiya couldn't take the silence any longer. Since they were so far away, had no way of actually assisting, and the way of relaying a message was time-consuming, the other officers commanded Davis to report back sparingly. The first update signaled the start of operations. The second, forty-five minutes later, said that the enemy forces were as large and powerful as they had thought, that the aerial team was already in scramble mode, and that Yolei and Hawkmon had been shot down.

That last part hit her hard. Yolei was her DNA digivolution partner, ending up in such a scary situation while Kari could only sit back home and listen for news. Even if everything went well, it would be hours before they heard about Matt and TK. Yet her and Tai and Izzy hovered around the system without a word. Finally, the tension became too much to bear and Kari just walked out.

She knew she should have tried to find Zoe to fill in, and almost went to find her before going downstairs to the storage room to calm down. As it turned out, that's where Zoe was, seated on the couch with a cup of water.

Zoe grumbled upon seeing her superior. "Suppose I have to head back up, huh?"

Kari shook her head and sat on the opposite end. "They're pretty much glued to the signal. I don't think it's a big deal."

They sat in silence for at least a minute. Kari found it just as tense as it was upstairs. She could sense she was on the verge of breaking down, as the lives of TK and Matt seemed to hang in the balance with no way to help or even get reliable news. But she fought it off as best she could. She knew how much Zoe criticized her composure. Losing it in front of her would be humiliating.

"Are you okay?" Zoe asked. She must have sensed it too.

Kari forced a smile back. "I'm fine."

"You're lying." Kari's head lowered. "It's got to be a pretty helpless feeling."

"I'm trying," Kari said, head shaking. "But I just want to hear that they're okay. I just want to know they're alive. I'm trying to hold it together but..."

Zoe sighed. "Jeez, just let it out. It's okay. Those guys mean a lot to you. I can't blame you for getting a little emotional."

Kari was still leaning forward, head facing the floor. "Are you sure? I know you think I let everything affect me too much. I really am trying."

"No, I get it. I..." Zoe stopped when she realized what Kari had said. "Look, I know we don't always see eye to eye, but I really hope they find them. You may not like me much, but-"

"I like you," Kari said. Zoe turned; the child of light was staring back at her.

"You shouldn't," Zoe said, looking away and shaking her head. "Not with all the things I say about you. If you haven't noticed, I'm not very nice."

"But you're good. And you stand up for what you believe in. Even when it's hard. I wish I was that strong." Kari inched closer. "You were right about Nene's report. I needed to do something about it and I'm glad you made me. And the way you defended Mimi?" She shook her head, eyes wider. "I could never stand up to my friends like that."

"I don't know if they're my friends anymore." Zoe bit her lip. "I don't know if I have any friends at all."

Kari paused. All of her grief over the mission was forgotten at the sight of Zoe struggling with her own problems. "It's funny," she said, barely above a mumble. "All these years we've been working together and I never realized how lonely you were."

Zoe turned to her. She wanted desperately to deny it. She couldn't. It wasn't even a few incidents over the last week. Zoe couldn't say if there had been any time since arriving in the Digital World, or even in the years before that, where she could have honestly said she was happy. "I don't think you realize how lucky you are. One sign of trouble and you've got Tai or Izzy or Davis who will drop everything to help you."

"No, I know I'm lucky. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have made it this far." Kari put a hand on Zoe's shoulder. "You don't have anybody like that, do you?"

"I don't know. None of my guys are all that great with emotional support. Koichi maybe, but we aren't as close as we should be. With JP it's... complicated."

"What about Jeremy? I heard you've been spending a lot of time together."

Zoe sighed. "I don't know. It's nice to have somebody new to talk to, but... well, he was pretty forward about how he feels about me." She stared at the wall, suddenly pale. "That sort of thing has led to some ugly situations before." With half a grin, she added. "And I wouldn't say he's my usual type."

With a nod, Kari said, "I'm really glad I don't have to deal with that sort of thing."

Zoe raised an eyebrow as her grin faded. She shrugged it off and mumbled, "Right..."

"But Zoe..." Kari sat closer and put a hand on Zoe's knee. "I want to help. I want to be there if you need someone to talk to. I just... want to try to be your friend."

For a long time, Zoe tried to find a reason to say no. She still had her doubts about Kari and the other digidestined. She wasn't going to be swayed away by one moment. But in the end, she needed somebody to lean on and Kari was the only one offering without conditions.

"That would be nice," she said. Kari leaned in for a hug; Zoe turned to accept it, eyes welling up as she tried to fool herself into thinking she didn't need this.

* * *

Suzie Wong thought she had the most boring job: she and Lopmon were literally guarding a hole. While Cody supervised the tunneling project that would lead the strike team into the lower floors of the castle and the dungeon that Matt and TK were presumably held in, she was making sure no one interfered with the entrance. It allowed the strike team to keep their forces hidden until they were inside. With everything else keeping the enemy forces busy, it was unlikely she would see any action.

A message from Davis was a saving grace, as it let Suzie leave. She and Lopmon dropped into the tunnel and crawled in. Digmon and Dorulumon had made good progress with their tunnel. They were already under the moat and finishing with the stone wall that would take them inside. Here the tunnel widened enough to let everybody stand.

"What's the latest?" Cody asked, not turning around.

Suzie frowned. "Is that any way to say hello? We've been standing alone out there for more than an hour. You can do better!"

He still didn't turn around. He just sighed. "Hi, Suzie. What's the latest?"

"Nope! Not 'til you look at me."

"It must not be that important then."

Finally, Lopmon said, "General Motomiya wanted us to relay that the courtyard is actually a large pool and that you may need to adjust your depth accordingly."

"Traitor," Suzie mumbled, squeezing Lopmon's head.

"We're fine," said Digmon. "It's basement on the other end of this wall. I can feel it."

"All right then." Cody nodded. "Thank you."

Suzie didn't budge. The drilling continued in silence until Cody said, "Why are you still here?"

"It's boring up top," she pouted. "Isn't it boring down here? And dirty? And loud?"

Cody cringed. He could hear her over the drilling and found it twice as irritating. "It doesn't bother me. You bother me."

She nudged him with her shoulder. "Jeez, are you always such a sourpuss?"

"According to my friends, yes." He looked at her for the first time. "Besides, we're in the middle of a mission to rescue TK and Matt. This is very important to me."

"Doesn't mean you can't-" She stopped when the drilling did. The wall gave way, revealing a dark, narrow hallway. Suzie got on her squawker and said, "Mikey, we're in. Get down here."

"Digmon! Dorulumon! Cover the entrance!" Cody shouted. The two Digimon jumped inside and secured each end of the hallway. "Great, now the strike team can-"

"Rock Cracking!" Digmon shouted, attacking something down the hallway. Cody, Suzie and Lopmon got closer and saw the masses of Ninjamon charging towards them. Lopmon jumped in to help him. Cody entered the basement, but stopped Suzie when she tried to.

"No! It's too dangerous!" Cody said, hands on her shoulders. "Stay here and wait for the others."

"But-" Dorulumon's attack silenced her. So she sat in the hole and watched Cody keep an eye on an attack that was now coming from both sides. "I'm not helpless you know!"

"I'm not getting into an argument with you, Suzie," Cody said, frantically darting his eyes between the two sides. "Neither of us can do much of anything until Mikey and the others get here, so there's no reason both of us need to get killed."

Suzie folded her arms and sneered, frequently looking back to see if the cavalry was on their way. She turned back to Cody just in time to see a Ninjamon get past Dorulumon.

"Look out!" She leaped forward, planted her foot and executed a perfect high kick into the Ninjamon's midsection, sending him sprawling to the floor. Cody looked back at her, stunned. She flipped a strand of hair back and grinned. "See? Not helpless."

"How was I supposed to know you study martial arts?" Cody asked. She kept on grinning; she didn't actually study them, just watched Henry practice.

A backpedaling Dorulumon bumped into her, knocking her towards Cody. "We may have a problem here," said the wolf as the Ninjamon's numbers began to overwhelm them from both sides. Cody clutched her as the three Digimon surrounded both of them, themselves fending off what were almost a hundred enemies.

"If nothing else, I give you a little more credit," Cody said.

"Lot of good that does!" Suzie cried.

"Seismic Speaker!" Ballistamon's shout signaled the massive sound wave that floored enough of the Ninjamon to allow them to see him, Shoutmon, and Mikey. Ewan and Rika followed. Tuwarmon and Renamon charged ahead, each taking a side and leaping into the air.

"Fujin's Waves!"

"Diamond Storm!" The two attacks forced back enough of the Ninjamon to let the strike team secure a position inside. The reinforcements were enough to halt the attack.

Understandably, Digmon and Dorulumon were exhausted from the drilling and subsequent battle. As Digmon turned back into Armadillomon, Dorulumon returned to Mikey's Fusion Loader. Armadillomon looked on, simultaneously alarmed and jealous.

"Okay, which way do we go?" Mikey asked. He was met with silence.

Rika stamped her foot. "You're kidding me. We go to all this trouble to get down here and you don't know where to go?"

"Why don't we split up?" Ewan suggested. "Mikey and I will go one way and you and Suzie and Cody can go the other way?

"Me and... Suzie?" Rika looked at the young tamer. Suzie smiled back.

"What, haven't you worked with Suzie before?" Mikey raised his eyebrows. "She's got these sweet modify cards. She's great."

"I-" Rika tried to protest, but Mikey and Ewan ran off.

Suzie smirked. "Did you hear that? 'Great.' From the gogglehead. I want that on a certificate."

"Let's go!" shouted Cody. He wasn't sure if adding Rika to the team was going to make this operation better or worse for him.

* * *

Marcus Damon knew his team was doing exactly what the plan called for, but he hated every minute of it. While Beowolfmon ran across the other walls to take care of the remaining Mamemon, RizeGreymon had made next to no progress against the pool full of Seadramon. Even after Takato bio-merged into Gallantmon, little was changing.

"Rising Destroyer!" RizeGreymon's attack took out several, but before he could fly further ahead, attacks from all sides halted him. Gallantmon was able to use his shield to block and counter threats in front of him, but there were too many from the sides to advance. More Seadramon popped out of the pool to replace the ones defeated.

"This isn't fair!" Marcus shouted, hanging back with MetalGreymon. He leaned over one of the pools, just as a Seadramon popped out of it.

"Ice-"

"Shut up!" Marcus punched it back into the water. "RizeGreymon, get back here!"

Gallantmon already knew what was coming and fell back to give Marcus and RizeGreymon cover. As expected, RizeGreymon reverted to Agumon. "DNA Charge- Overdrive!" shouted Marcus.

ShineGreymon took to the sky, focused on a populated section of pool and fired. "Glorious Burst!" The light energy blew away at least four Seadramon. He charged towards the front door.

"Lightning Joust!" Gallantmon's attack led him and Marcus speeding across the narrow walkways toward the main door. They fought their way across, taking care of all the nearby Seadramon on their mad dash. "Now how do we get in?"

Marcus knocked.

"Look out!" MetalGreymon shouted. Gallantmon turned around in time to see two more Seadramon right in front of him.

"Beo Saber!" Beowolfmon leaped down in time to slit their necks before they could threaten anybody. He landed in time to watch more Seadramon emerge. "The hell are they coming from?"

"All right! Here we go!" Marcus pounded his fists as the door began to swing open.

"Megaton Hydro Laser!" A giant water cannon fired at them, knocking them all backwards into the pool. ShineGreymon and Gallantmon emerged in time to see a massive turtle-like cyborg step into the courtyard. JumboGamemon's twin cannons were aimed squarely back at them.

Gallantmon held up his shield, but looked around when he realized not everyone had surfaced. "Marcus? Beowolfmon?" He looked into the water and saw a Seadramon dragging Marcus under.

Marcus tried to pull himself free, but Seadramon's grip was too tight. He wasn't able to get a breath before going under. The lack of oxygen started to take its toll. Even so, he saw a troubling figure approaching him, just as Beowolfmon slashed the Seadramon and pulled Marcus up to the surface.

"Are you all right?" Beowolfmon asked, guarding Marcus against the the remaining Seadramon.

"Our problems are just starting," said Marcus between several coughing fits. Beowolfmon saw what he meant as a MetalSeadramon flew out of the pool and stared down the three opposing Digimon.

Beowolfmon wasn't sure whether to keep his eyes on him or JumboGamemon. "Guys, we may have a problem here."

* * *

Koichi Kimura didn't want to admit he was getting bored. It was almost reflex action by now to join Jeri once Takato had left for his mission. He met her in the small office assigned to the hospitality director. As it turned out, Jeri still had a fair bit of work to do.

"You have to do this every week?" he asked.

"Sometimes twice. I'm sorry it's not very exciting." She patted his hand and resumed her typing.

"I wish I could help. I'm not exactly busy right now." Koichi huffed. After the Etemon debacle, he figured it would be a long time before he had the chance to plan any major events.

She smiled at him. "You're keeping me company. That's plenty." She leaned towards him, lips pursed for a kiss.

Before he could give her one, the door opened and Izzy burst in. Jeri pulled away from Koichi and turned to Izzy, hoping her smile would mask her blush.

"Do you have a moment?" Izzy asked.

"Not really. Trying to get a river order in."

"Sorry..." Izzy noticed Koichi. "What are you doing here?"

Jeri answered for him: "He's getting a couple things for his room. What do you need?"

Izzy dropped several sheets of stapled paper on her desk. "Can you order all this?"

As she looked over the stack, Koichi asked, "Isn't there an operation right now? Koji made it sound like it was a pretty big deal."

"It is. But it's out of our communication range so there isn't much we can do about it right now." Izzy sighed. "This is my means of distraction."

"We have a lot of this equipment already," Jeri said. "Have you talked to JP?"

"Not yet. Should I do that first?"

"Please. I can hold off on the order until then." She handed back the papers. "So what are you planning that you need all this gear?"

"Uh..." Izzy suddenly turned sheepish, looking away frantically. "Well, you know that giant trunk full of data the patrol team found?"

"Yes, Ryo told me about it. Did you figure out what it was? Was it anything useful?"

"For research purposes, it's total junk. This is my method of getting some measure of function out of it."

Jeri's eyes widened. The items on his list were all pieces of sound equipment. "Wait, are you saying..."

Izzy nodded. "Music. Quite possibly every piece of music ever uploaded to the internet. Rather than let it go to waste, I was thinking of organizing some sort of social event."

She turned to Koichi, then looked back. "You mean... a dance?"

He had to think for a moment, but Izzy nodded. "Hmm... yes, I guess that would be what you call it. This is sure to be a very trying battle and I think we could all stand to enjoy some recreation afterwards. Especially if it's successful."

Jeri furrowed her eyebrows. "You weren't going to do this right after they come back, were you?

"That was the idea. Is that wrong?"

She shot to her feet. "Are you kidding? I'm going to want a new dress! We want everybody looking fantastic! We need to let everybody order new clothes." She pointed at the papers. "And I didn't see any lighting on there. Can't have a dance without lights!"

"Music needs lights?"

"Of course, dummy! And we'll have to do decorations, and refreshments, and let people find dates..."

"D-dates?"

Jeri huffed. "Have you ever been to one of these things before?"

"It should be plainly obvious that I haven't."

"You don't actually plan on running this, do you?"

"I..." Izzy sighed. "I guess I failed to consider the magnitude of the event. Do you have time to handle the details?"

"Absolutely not!" Jeri smiled and gestured towards Koichi. "But Koichi does."

Koichi bowed. "Please give me another chance."

Izzy hesitated for a moment, but smiled. "With Jeri and I helping you, I'm sure you'll do a great job. Good luck." He handed Koichi the papers and left the office.

Jeri hugged Koichi. "Isn't that great?! I knew if I gave him enough to think about, he'd let you plan it."

Koichi sighed. "Yeah... it's nice to have something to work on again."

"What's wrong?" Jeri pulled away, enthusiasm suddenly drained.

He looked down to the floor. "Well... the girl I want to be my date's probably going with someone else." His eyes found hers as he added, "Isn't she?"

* * *

Christopher Aonuma knew Davis was crazy. While he never bothered to befriend Ken, he respected his roommate's intelligence. He didn't realize the devastating combo they made.

"Given the size of that pool, it's impossible for all those Seadramon to live in there. That's why I suspect an underwater entrance." It was the second time Christopher needed it explained. It sounded more sensible coming from Ken.

"So yeah, snoop around down there and see if you can plug it up," said Davis.

Kazu was listening in. "And how do we expect to do that? Other than gator-boat, none of our Digimon are good swimmers." He saw several aquatic Digimon swimming around them. None of them looked friendly.

"Dammit," mumbled Christopher.

"Don't fret. I'm sure we'll find a solution," Guardromon said.

"No... we have one." Christopher was angry that Mikey had so much foresight. To think Christopher almost refused when Mikey offered to lend him just in case. "Chibitortomon! Dracomon! Digifuse!"

The resulting combination was a little blue dragon with a turtle shell, natural swimming ability... and a knack for observation and finding weak points. Christopher gave him instructions and ordered him in the water. After some reluctance, the fusion complied.

"So what's the plan to keep them alive?" asked Henry.

"Don't know," Christopher replied. "Hadn't thought that far." To be honest, he found both of them terribly annoying and didn't care. "Why don't you get on that?"

Henry nodded at Rapidmon, who hovered over the surface, occasionally firing a shot into the water at any Seadramon threatening DracoTortomon. After investigating the undersea cliff walls, DracoTortomon surfaced and Rapidmon lifted him up and flew him back.

"I found a tunnel, and the weak point that will close it," said DracoTortomon. "Now what?"

Moments later, Deckerdramon floated next to the wall and Shurimon held Guadromon over the water. Guardromon was understandably nervous. "Kazu, you do realize when submerged in water, iron will-"

"What are you, my science teacher?" Kazu interrupted. "We're gonna be the big heroes!"

Christopher waved him off. "Don't worry, we've got Cutemon."

"Uh... I don't know if I can do rust," Cutemon mumbled.

At Christopher's signal, Shurimon used his long limbs to lower Guardromon enough to find DracoTortomon pointing out the tunnel and the place to shoot. One Guardian Barrage attack completely collapsed the rock and made entrance impossible.

DracoTortomon surfaced as Shurimon pulled Guardromon back aboard Deckerdramon. "We did it!" DracoTortomon shouted.

Guardromon was sprawled out on the deck when Kazu ran up to him. "You hear that?!" He stopped when he saw the orange splotches covering his partner.

Christopher patted Kazu on the shoulder. "Nobody'll notice those. Good work."

* * *

Rika Nonaka had immense respect for both Cody and Suzie... so long as she wasn't actually working with them. As they searched the empty hallway, checking vacant room after vacant room for signs of Matt and TK, Suzie did not stop talking and Cody would not put an end to it.

After clearing out yet another empty room, Suzie said, "I'm just saying I saved your life and you owe me one."

Cody shook his head. "I already acknowledged that you saved me. But we're on the same team. We're supposed to help each other out. We shouldn't keep score." He turned to Rika. "You understand that, right?"

Rika shrugged. "I always keep score."

As Cody grumbled, Armadillomon said, "C'mon Cody, what's so bad about a little life debt?"

A rumble from above them stopped their movement and their conversation. Rika exhaled loudly. "What are those goggleheads doing?" she asked. She tried to sound annoyed, but a hint of worry betrayed her.

"Hey!" Lopmon looked up, rubbing her head. "I just felt a drop of water." A second drop fell on her from the ceiling.

Suzie looked at both Lopmon and Rika, then turned on her squawker. "Davis, this is Suzie. It's pretty empty down here, but we heard something upstairs and the ceiling's starting to leak. What's going on?"

"Marcus and them are having some issues," Davis replied.

Ken added, "They're fighting two Mega-levels that are strong in aquatic conditions in what amounts to a giant swimming pool. You're probably right below them."

"Stupid Marcus. What did he get into this time?" Rika muttered.

"Hey, did you say the ceiling's leaking?" Davis asked. "Maybe you guys could drain the pool."

"Are you crazy?! We'd drown!"

"Actually Rika..." Renamon looked up. "We'd be protected as Sakuyamon."

Rika sneered at Renamon, angry that she'd even entertain the idea. She returned to the squawker. "This is insane! You seriously want us to break through the ceiling and have God knows how many gallons of water falling on our heads?"

"And one of the Digimon they're fighting, hopefully," Davis replied.

"If we take away the water and split them up, they'll have a much better chance," said Ken.

Rika grumbled. She could argue with Davis forever, but stopped short of questioning Ken. "Well, fine, I'll be safe, but what about these two?"

Cody looked at Armadillomon uneasily. "Well, I have Submarimon, but..."

"How much room you got in there?" Davis asked. Nobody answered. Suzie's face contorted.

"This is going to get uncomfortable, isn't it?" she muttered.

Cody shook his head, equally disgusted. "That won't work anyway. We'll need Digmon to collapse the ceiling. He can't turn into Submarimon fast enough."

"Actually, we can deal with that." Rika reached into her pocket and retrieved a card.

She showed it to Lopmon, who nodded and bowed at Armadillomon. "Thank you for your consideration."

Suzie took the card, snickered, and ran it through her D-Power. "Digi-Modify! Digmon's Drill activate!"

A giant drill replaced Lopmon's ears and she took a Renamon-assisted leap up to the ceiling.

"Hey, that's not cool!" Armadillomon shouted.

He didn't get any more room to protest as he found himself armor digivolving into Submarimon. Cody prepared him in time to see Rika and Renamon bio-merge.

"Hey!" Suzie shouted. "You can't look at her while she's doing that!"

Cody still stared slackjawed at Sakuyamon. "I... realize that now."

She smacked his shoulder. "Perv... no funny business in there, got that?"

He didn't get a chance to respond as the drilling began to crack the ceiling. The water went from drips to a stream and the cracks grew. Lopmon knew it was time to stop and dropped to the floor.

Sakuyamon felt the ceiling and looked down. "Incoming!" she shouted.

Lopmon jumped into Suzie's arms and the tamer sprinted into Submarimon, where Cody was already inside. He clutched her as tightly as he could and was only barely able to close the hatch before the ceiling gave way and the water cascaded down, flooding the room in seconds. Neither Submarimon nor Sakuyamon bothered trying to swim against the deluge, instead riding it down the hallway.

Submarimon was certainly not a Digimon built for two, as Suzie's face was pressed hard against Cody's chest. "I... I can't breathe!" she shouted, voice muffled. "And I can't feel my legs!"

Cody tried to look down, but trying to sort out whose legs were whose was difficult with a steering wheel in his ear. "Just hang on!"

"You owe me another one for this!"

"Technically, I'm saving you!" They crashed into a wall. Instinctively, he cradled Suzie's head.

The next impact was some sort of explosion directly above them. Water started pouring into the hatch. "We're leaking!" Suzie screamed.

Cody forced his eyes open and looked out the window. They were being pulled backwards down the next hallway, letting him see MetalSeadramon behind them. Another attack from him shattered the glass and completely filled the hatch with water. In fact, Submarimon turned back into Armadillomon.

He continued to clutch Suzie underwater while Lopmon swam to grab Armadillomon. Thankfully the wave ended and they were able to breathe again as they slid along the hallway, water still covering a foot of it.

Cody opened his eyes again and saw MetalSeadramon prepared another attack. It was aimed straight at them. He clutched his eyes shut and did his best to protect Suzie.

"Varooma-Boomerang!" He didn't need it. The attack from Shoutmon X4 gave Mikey and Ewan enough time to pull both them and their Digimon to safety.

MetalSeadramon shook off the attack and said, "You think I'm scared of the likes of you?"

"How about the both of us?" Sakuyamon replied. "Spirit Strike!"

"You two okay?" Ewan asked Cody and Suzie. As Shoutmon X4 and Sakuyamon proved to be a fair match for MetalSeadramon, Cody finally took a breath and released Suzie.

Only she wasn't releasing him. Cody looked Ewan, then back at her. "Uh, Suzie... you can let go now."

She slowly relented, her eyes opening as she realized it was safe. As he sighed, she hugged him. Cody winced; they were soaking wet.

"Fine, you only owe me one," she said.

* * *

Koji Minamoto was determined not to let his frustration get to him. ShineGreymon and Gallantmon had struggled against both JumboGamemon and MetalSeadramon in these conditions, while MetalGreymon didn't dare move without a proper landing area. Beowolfmon should have made a difference, but he tried one attack too many. His strike did no damage against JumboGamemon and left him vulnerable to a counter-attack that cost him his form. All of his prior work taking out the Mamemon left him too drained to attempt to become MagnaGarurumon. He knew he should have made the switch sooner, and was kicking himself for such a rash mistake.

When the pool drained and took MetalSeadramon with it, JumboGamemon stood in front of the entrance, still blasting at anything that moved and still deflecting anything that attacked it. Koji was lucky to make it back to the front gate and the protection of MetalGreymon. Marcus was still dodging attacks in the courtyard. While the lack of water eliminated the enemy's natural advantage, it also made falling from the walkways a more dangerous prospect.

"Okay, guys, all at once!" Marcus shouted, holding up a hand. ShineGreymon, Gallantmon, and MetalGreymon all charged. "Three... two..."

"Jumbo Crater!" JumboGamemon interrupted their plans, firing all of his cannons in every direction, including inside the castle. Everybody had to take cover. MetalGreymon didn't in time and was blasted backwards into the outer moat.

To make matters worse, Davis chose now to ask Marcus for a status update. Sprawled out on the ground, Marcus answered, "Yeah, MetalSeadramon's gone, but the big guy here isn't moving. We can't get close to him."

While ShineGreymon's next attack was swatted way, Marcus waited for a response. None came. Another round from JumboGamemon's snout cannon forced Gallantmon into defense. Marcus gritted his teeth; it wasn't that he felt any danger, but unless they could get the jump on him, this enemy would forever remain unmovable.

Marcus's squawker crackled to life again when Davis said, "Could you guys keep him distracted for a sec? Oh, and stand back." Marcus shrugged and relayed the message to Gallantmon.

"Shield of the Just!" Gallantmon's energy beam from the right would have at least moved JumboGamemon if he hadn't already dug into a small crater. He returned fire.

"Glorious Burst!" ShineGreymon's attack from the left would have done the same. JumboGamemon lowered his head but otherwise seemed to absorb it.

"Giga Crusher!" Floating above Marcus, Imperialdramon Fighter Mode fired a huge energy wave that caught JumboGamemon unawares. The combined force of the three energy attacks shattered the beast's armor.

"Lightning Joust!" Once last charge from Gallantmon's lance was finally enough to destroy it.

Rising to his feet, Marcus looked up at Imperialdramon Fighter Mode and shook his head. Over the squawker he said, "You know we could have handled that. Don't think you saved our skins or anything."

"Oh of course," Davis replied, mockingly. "He picked Keenan up to help you inside. Go get our guys."

Marcus didn't respond. He waited for Keenan to leap off Imperialdramon. Koji rejoined them and Takato and Guilmon split apart. As ShineGreymon guarded the entrance, the four boys and one Digimon finally broke into the main building.

"This way," Keenan said, leading them all to the wide staircase in front of them. Downstairs, they saw Mikey and Ewan watching Shoutmon X4 and Sakuyamon's fight with MetalSeadramon. Mikey flashed a thumb's up to Marcus. Marcus returned it and followed Keenan in the opposite direction.

In the corner of the hallway, Keenan pointed at a large door. It was locked.

"Pyro Sphere!" Guilmon's fireball warped the hinges and it fell right off.

"Good job, buddy," Takato said, unable to control his smile. "Now let's get 'em."

They stepped into the room carefully. None of them coordinated anything, but all did their best to look professional and, perhaps more importantly, impressive. They were, after all, the great liberators.

That stopped the moment they saw whom they were liberating. Takato squinted in disbelief. "No... wait... what?"

Marcus looked ready to throw up. "You've gotta be kidding me..." he mumbled.

The old man set aside his cup of tea, stood from his soft easy chair, glanced at his Kamemon cowering in the corner, and shook his head. "Well if it isn't Marcus... should have known you'd be the one behind all this ruckus."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 10: "Spoiler Alert"**  
In this episode, the teams plan out a way to keep the newly taken castle defended. As Izzy's dance approaches, Tai isn't sure how to interpret Sora asking him out, Davis tells Kari a secret about TK, and Mimi's interest in Ewan intensifies. Jeri finds a problem with the refreshments Koichi imported.

" _One song. For one song, we're all together."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** Feel free to punch me for the twist ending. It's okay. Free shot.

While Tai and Sora's reactions to the prospect of finding Matt and TK are obvious, it's fun to explore the reactions of some of the other digidestined like Izzy, Davis, and Mimi last episode. There's a twisted bit of angst when the facts and his emotions pull Izzy in two different directions.

One of the fun things I picked up doing System Restore was the differing nature of the various seasons' evolutions. Even if they had full knowledge of them, expecting one leader to command the others is truly daunting.

Shoutmon X6 does not actually appear in Fusion as the number refers to the number of components rather than a sequence. It does appear in the manga, with all the parts of X7 sans Sparrowmon.

In the interest of keeping episodes under 10,000 words, there's a deleted scene! It didn't have enough meaning to retain but it involved Davis, Ken and Yoshi back at base. Maybe I'll release it somewhere if there's enough demand.

Cliche as it sounds, don't freak out at the whole dance thing. It will be the main focus of the next two episodes, but it also seriously advances all of the relationship-based storylines, throws a major shocker, and launches the story into position for the mid-season climax.

epIDvFAn9EU  
B0049KYVKW


	11. 10- Spoiler Alert

**Neverworld**

 _Say I ruin everything for you- well it's mutual._  
 _In the future, do not do what you do._  
 _\- MC Frontalot, "Spoiler Alert"_

 **Episode 10**

Homer Yushima was as cordial a host as could be expected given the circumstances. There wasn't enough seating for all nineteen humans and associated Digimon, but Yushima did his best to make due with as many floor cushions as he could find. Kamemon served all of them tea; Chibitortomon thought he was just the grandest creature he'd ever seen and insisted on helping.

Mikey began the conference with the obvious clarification: "So... you're not a prisoner?"

Yushima laughed it off. "What makes you think I'm a prisoner? I was only hiding in the basement for protection." He wagged a finger. "Did any of you bother to talk to us?"

"Well, it's a pretty aggressive setup you got here," Takuya said. "Massive army. Moats. Guard towers. Flooding the courtyard- what's up with that?"

"Spiffy, isn't it?! Great for fishing! We catch all we need!" After his burst of excitement, Yushima frowned. "I hope you're planning to help me rebuild that."

As everyone squirmed, Yushima continued, "As for the giant army, it's a necessity in these parts. We get visitors quite often. Unpleasant ones from the nearby continent. Rough place over there. Any time they try to move into yours, they always try to take this castle. We shut up shop and don't let them. We scare them off in time. Been this way since I got here oh... almost three years ago."

"Three years?" Yoshi exclaimed. "So you've been here as long as we have! How'd you end up getting separated from us?"

Ken scratched his chin. "I have an idea. I'll have to run it by Izzy."

"Anybody else stashed here?" Marcus asked.

"Nope, just me and Kamemon," Yushima replied. He winked at Marcus. "No sign of Spencer or your sister." Marcus looked at everyone else sheepishly. He would never admit he was asking about family.

"Hey, where Sepikmon?" Keenan asked. "Maybe he was talking about someone else?"

"Need to keep up on your grammar lessons," Yushima reprimanded. "And it's unlikely. Sepikmon does my scouting work. Lets me know when I can expect company."

"So... no TK or Matt then?" Davis wanted to make sure.

"Afraid I can't help you. More missing friends?" Yolei and Cody sighed. "Buck up, you'll find them. They're always in the last place you look."

The door opened and a Monitamon burst in and whispered something to Nene. Everyone waited for him to finish and for her to relay. She stood up and bowed her head. "First off, Command wanted to make sure to congratulate everybody on a job well done. Although we didn't find who we were looking for, it was a successful operation and they thank you. Secondly, they would like everybody to return home immediately. They have something special planned for next week. Mr. Yushima, you are of course welcome to join us. I'm sure you'll find it more hospitable than this place."

"Thanks but I'll have to pass," Yushima said.

"Oh, thank God," Yoshi blurted, gaining a few stares. "What, it was already getting crowded with these new kids."

"In fact, I would like some of you to stay behind." This turned some heads. "I was wondering why all of the attacks seemed to come from the same direction and never from your continent. It's because you were doing your part to keep it safe. I realize now that by keeping the riff-raff on their side, we were doing ours too. Thanks to you, that's now in jeopardy."

He pointed at JumboGamemon's digiegg in the corner. "I know you didn't intend to, but your attack depleted our ranks. It will take a long time to replenish them. Until then, I would like some of you to stay behind and held defend this castle. It will make all of your lives easier in the long run."

Takuya stood up. "We're on it. We'll stay."

"Who's we, buster?" Yolei asked angrily.

"Me and Koji. That should be all they need." He turned to Koji, who nodded.

"Don't you think you should run this by Command first?" Cody asked.

Takuya smiled. "No. I really don't."

He felt a few glares, but nobody else responded.

Yushima nodded. "There, that's settled. Also, we should find some means of easier communication between our castles. And transportation if possible. I have no interest in living with you all, but I wouldn't mind paying a visit. Kamemon and I have always liked to travel." Kamemon looked back at him, shaking his head aggressively.

"Hey, one question," Mikey said, raising a hand. "You guys have been defending this place all this time, but we were able to bust in and could have taken over. Aren't you worried about that?"

"Nonsense!" Yushima smiled. "Our modest army against the combined forces of teams from five different worlds? When you're all working together, nothing in this world could conquer that."

* * *

Thomas Norstein refused to say anything to the other officers. He had spent the entire day being the voice of reason and cautioning against a rash attack on a well-guarded castle for the sake of rescuing their missing teammates. Although he was vindicated in that Mikey's team would have never stood a chance alone, the mission was ultimately a tremendous success. But instead of lost digidestined reuniting with Tai and the others, it was a fellow member of DATS. The irony mortified Thomas.

Kari relayed a professional message to the Monitamon. Then she sat back in her chair, staring blankly at the monitor. Thomas could only guess what was going through her head, but again he refused to say anything. He patted her hand. She jolted, pulling it back and looking at him, suddenly breathless. He bowed his head and turned to the others. Tai was sneering at the window. Izzy was typing at his workstation. From the slow pace and lack of actual movement along the keys, Thomas knew he was only pretending to work on something. Really, he was mired in thought.

"A data stream," Izzy said, stopping his fake typing but not turning to Thomas. "In case you were wondering. The day you arrived, Ken saw one pass dangerously close to your arrival portal. We were afraid somebody had gotten sucked in. Once you four arrived safely we forgot all about it."

Thomas nodded. "It is consistent with our theories about who gets pulled here. Possession of a digivice and a trip to the Digital World where they played a part in saving it. There are several members of DATS who come close but fall short of meeting the necessary criteria. Commander-General Yushima was the one I had the most questions about."

"Were you close to him?"

With a sigh, Thomas said, "Out of respect for you three I'm not going to pretend we were anything more than mere allies." Izzy returned a grim nod.

A ding from the elevator startled all of them. Koichi emerged, clipboard in hand. "Izzy, could you approve these modifications to your request list? I checked with JP and took off some redundant items, but Jeri and I thought of several more if we want to do this right."

As Izzy took the clipboard and read it over, Tai spun around and popped out of his chair. "Wait, no, you aren't still doing that stupid dance now!"

"You already approved it, Tai," Izzy said, not looking up.

"That was so we could welcome them back in style! What's the point now?"

"Now we need a morale boost more than ever." Izzy stamped the bottom sheet and returned the clipboard to Koichi. "This looks good. Nice work."

Tai sat back down. "You realize everybody running around trying to find dates isn't going to sit well with Sora, right?"

Koichi chuckled. "I'm sure Jeri was just exaggerating with all that. Nobody's going to care about finding dates for this."

Tai, Izzy and Thomas all stared blankly at Koichi. Even Kari broke out of her rut long enough raise a suspicious eyebrow at him.

"I haven't been on a date since taking Kristy out for her birthday and even I find that hard to believe," Thomas said.

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda felt more left out than ever. It wasn't that she didn't have responsibilities during the mission. But joining Rosemon on the battlefield was impractical and dangerous, leaving her on the ground with Davis and Ken. While they commanded everyone, she was stuck monitoring the defensive unit assigned to making sure nothing from the castle attempted to attack their home continent. She couldn't help but look at all the PawnChessmon and see it as some sort of demotion.

Now she was riding Imperialdramon back to base, staving off a few jealous stares from Yolei. It wasn't her fault someone on her old team ended up being "rescued" rather than Matt or TK, and she was sure the digidestined knew that. Given the letdown they had suffered, she thought it best to let them go on seething.

She left the actual consoling up to Henry. Yoshi realized the folly of sitting close to him and Yolei, but still preferred it to the conference of morons Davis and Marcus were having. How Ken suffered through it she had no idea, and Rika's frequent outbursts suggested she wasn't suffering through it at all. Yoshi found the quiet of Henry, Yolei and Cody far more to her liking.

At least until Suzie joined them. "So Cody, I think I worked out a way for you to pay me back."

"I don't owe you anything," Cody replied.

"What did you do for him?" Henry asked.

"Totally saved his life!" Suzie exclaimed. "It was all those sweet karate moves I picked up from you."

"It's not karate, Suzie, it's-"

"You owe her one, Cody," Yolei said. "You have such a strict moral code; I would have thought repaying someone who saved your life would be obvious." Cody glared at her; she fought off the urge to giggle.

"That's why this is perfect because it works out for both of us." Suzie grinned at Cody. "You're going to take me out on a date."

"I'm not taking you out on a date," Cody replied.

"He's not taking you out on a date," Henry added.

"He's totally taking you out on a date!" Yolei exclaimed. Now Henry glared at Yolei.

Suzie nodded. "Yep, and you have to dress up nice and be a perfect gentleman and do everything that I want."

Yolei nudged Henry. "Hey, how come she gets it but you don't? You two are related."

Cody stared at Suzie for a long time as she kept a stupid grin on him. It was cat-like, as were her bright, unwavering eyes. For all the maturity she tried to convey normally, she was back to playing the adorable little girl. He glanced at Henry and Yolei, then turned back and said, "All right. I can do that." His voice was even as always, devoid of either joy or surrender.

Yoshi heard all of that and almost threw up. She was more than ten years older than Suzie with fewer viable romantic prospects. While Marcus and Kazu's party proved to be a fun but futile exercise, she still resented her situation. She was never going to talk herself into any of the established residents. But she still could have an open mind about the new kids. Either way, she was desperate to get away from the ever-growing Wong family.

She found Mikey sitting with Christoper, Nene, and Ewan and approached. He was the only real option as everybody disliked Christopher and she wasn't going to fight Mimi over Ewan (Nene was becoming an increasingly intriguing emergency alternative). She sat by them; Lalamon floated close to her, either to encourage her partner on or, more likely, watch her flop.

"You know, I don't think anybody really thanked you for finding this castle," she said, getting their attention. "From what I heard, you really had to work hard to track this place down." A small, kind smile appeared. "I know it isn't who we expected, but Commander-General Yushima was still very important to our mission and it's good to be in touch with him again." Yoshi shot Lalamon an angry glare to prevent her partner from ruining this show of gratitude with a fit of laughter.

"Hey, no problem," Mikey said. "We may not have been here a while, but we know when it's important to follow something like that, no matter who it led to."

Yoshi kept that smile painted on. Now she hoped she still had some semblance of the game she had back in the human world. "You know, you surprise me. Usually all of the other leaders turn out to be total dolts. You have a pretty good head on your shoulders." Now Christopher and Nene struggled to keep a straight face. "We should, uh... hang out sometime."

"Totally!" Mikey grinned. "Yeah, I mean I'm so glad we were able to pull this off. I was really worried we lost the scent a couple times. I haven't gotten a decent night's sleep in days." He blinked a couple times. "You seem pretty cool though. Sorry I got hurt and missed your party, 'cause..." His eyes fell shut and he fell over, his head crashing on top of Lalamon.

"What the hell?!" Lalamon cried.

Christopher opened his mouth to explain, but instead a snort of laughter escaped from his nose. He covered his mouth to hold it in, but most of his chuckling broke free. Nene and Ewan didn't bother restraining themselves.

Yoshi, meanwhile, was shocked. "What's wrong with him!? Why are you laughing?"

"He tends to overdo it sometimes," Ewan said. "We're all used to it."

"Typical Mikey timing for him to pass out just as a girl starts to hit on him." Nene said.

"I'm not hitting on him!" Yoshi struggled to pull Lalamon free.

"You were hitting on him," Christopher replied. He pulled Mikey up by the goggles; Yoshi tugged Lalamon so hard she fell backwards. "You'd make a good backup Angie."

"That girl helping Kenta in the habitat?" Yoshi could barely register her face; she certainly had nothing in common with her. "You're kidding me."

"You got a thing for Mikey and you cushion his falls. Ticks both boxes."

"I'm just giving him some credit and trying to be sociable. I have no interest in him whatsoever."

"Then why are you blushing?"

Yoshi felt her cheeks, as if she could feel how red they were. She figured it was anger at Christopher as much as actual affection toward someone she'd barely met. "You are the worst!" she grunted, trudging over to join Marcus and Rika.

* * *

Sora Takenouchi handled the news much in the same way as the other digidestined- stunned silence, a sense of resignation and a quiet admonishment for daring to be hopeful. She knew something was wrong when Tai insisted on pulling her into Jeri's office to tell her in private. At first, she decided that a successful mission that uncovered the wrong person wasn't the worst outcome. Then she struggled to think of anything worse than going through all that and still not knowing the truth about Matt and TK.

"I'm sorry," Tai said after giving her a minute to let it all sink in. He sat next to her, frozen the whole time debating whether it was appropriate to put a reassuring arm around her shoulder. It remained at his side. "Thomas said I shouldn't have told you. I guess he was right."

"It's all right," she said. "The problem isn't them being gone. The problem is not knowing. I'd rather know you're still trying."

"Of course I'm still trying." Tai's doubts suddenly vanished and he clasped her hand with both of his. "I'm never going to give up on them. We're going to keep looking. Not just for them, but for you. I want to see you happy again." He sighed. "The look on your face this morning when we said we found them... I want to see that every day."

Sora shook her head. "I don't need Matt to be happy. I'm happy a lot here. When you think about how far we've come since those first years and all the great people here, we have a lot to be happy about. It's just that without knowing the truth, I don't feel right moving past it."

The door opened and Jeri stepped in. She was surprised, and a little scared, to find them inside.

"I'm sorry, but, I, uh..." She pointed to her computer and shuffled over to it with as little eye contact as possible.

"Sorry, I just wanted some privacy," said Tai. "If you don't mind-"

"I wish I could, but I'm getting requests in for next week already. If I don't file these I'll forget about them." Jeri turned to them. "If it helps, I'm good with secrets."

Tai realized he was still holding Sora's hand and jolted back, staring at Jeri and ready to blurt out his standard denial. Sora didn't move. She just continued her thought: "But maybe it's time. The less I think about it, the easier it is. I know we want to believe they're alive. But why? It might be easier on all of us if we stop thinking we're going to find them and everything will go back to the way it was."

"But we can't give up on them," Tai protested. "Not when-"

"When what, Tai?" Sora turned to him, eyes focused. "Just because we can't prove they're dead doesn't mean they're anywhere around here. Or even in this world. And even if they are, what did they have to go through? Are they even the same people?"

Tai looked away. "I don't want to think about that."

"Neither do I. So I'm going to stop. Sure, I was happy when you told me what was going on, but then I spent the whole day worrying about it and I was miserable. I got nothing done today. And in the end, it was another dead end. If today taught me anything, it's that I can't do this anymore. Matt's gone, and rather than fall apart waiting for him to come back I need to just forget about him."

Tai bent over, hands covering his face. It was the ultimate disappointment to him, one beacon of hope snuffed out after he had spent years trying to keep them lit. He shook his head, struggling to find words for her.

Instead, they came from Jeri: "You can't actually do that, you know." She was still working on her computer. "The more you think you're past him, the more it bothers you."

Tai looked up at her and said, "If you don't mind, this is pretty complicated, so-"

"I sleep in a tower named in memory of my dead partner. I know what I'm talking about," Jeri replied. She turned to Sora and said, "You're never going to forget about him. If you think it hurts now, trying to push him out of your head will only make it worse."

"But at least you had a conclusion," Sora said. "You know how I feel about Leomon, but at least you know what happened. I still don't."

"Then there's no point in guessing. The only thing you're going to think of when it comes to Matt is the pain of not knowing. It's better to remember why he was so special to you. It's the only way you'll find it again."

A slow nod crept out of Sora. Tai saw it and blurted, "But he's out there somewhere. I'm sure of it. And we're going to find them."

Jeri didn't respond, instead resuming her work. Sora squeezed Tai's hand. "Keep looking. Never stop looking. But until we find them..." She shook her head. "I can't think like that. I need to move on."

Tai looked into her eyes. They needed some brightness again. "Guess I'll have to be hopeful for both of us," he said. She smiled back.

"Oh, this is gorgeous!" Jeri exclaimed, throwing them both out of the moment. She turned to them and smiled. "Sorry, but Mimi's dress is too perfect."

"Is that what you're doing?" Tai asked. "She already sent stuff for that dance thing?"

"There's no keeping Mimi from a party. Wait until we make the actual announcement. It's going to be huge." Jeri smiled at Sora. "I can't wait to see what you pick out."

Sora looked up at her. "What I..." She turned to Tai. He backed away, suddenly hesitant. "Guess I'll have to start shopping." As Tai started to blush, she added, "Are you going with me or do I have to try to remember how to find a date?"

"I-" he stammered. "I don't know. Wouldn't that be a bit weird?"

"It's going to be weird no matter what. I don't want to be too serious right away. With you..." She shrugged.

Tai frowned and looked away. All that and just a shrug. "Yeah, that's fine," he replied.

* * *

Davis Motomiya couldn't believe the chaos this dance was creating. Six days before the actual event, it was apparent that everybody was taking this far too seriously. This was mostly due to the dress code, particularly the prospect of ordering and getting an excuse to wear fancy clothes. Normally, looking fantastic was a low priority for most of the castle, at least to the point where they'd want to spend what little river privileges they had on it. Getting a free outfit was exciting stuff, and those who didn't care succumbed to peer pressure in due time.

This fed into the dating aspect. After all, why dress up without somebody to impress? If Izzy wanted to create the same awkwardness and desperation of high school socials, he succeeded. Everyone's mad scramble to lock somebody down amused Davis to no end.

He wasn't alone. "Did you see the hall at lunch today?" Thomas said. "I witnessed three people practicing speeches to ask somebody out. It's a sociologist's dream."

"Joining me in flying solo then?" Davis asked.

Thomas frowned. "Unfortunately, I'm taking Yoshi. Marcus won the coin flip."

"Dude, Yoshi's hot. What's wrong with that?"

"A complete lack of romantic interest or compatibility. At best we're good dance partners."

"Hey, it's better than getting swept up in the drama though."

"Indeed." Thomas nodded. "I don't think people understand the math involved. Unless everyone's sexual preferences deviate far outside a normal sample of the general population, it is mathematically impossible for everybody to attend with a potential romantic partner."

Davis turned his nose. "Translation?"

"There aren't enough girls," Izzy answered.

"Here's the problem with that..." Now Zoe chimed in, leaning on the back of Kari's chair. "I'm sure it's rough to be a boy without a date, but really, nobody's going to think anything of it. Being a girl without a date would be social suicide."

"So are you going with Jeremy then?" Kari asked, turning around in her chair.

"I don't know. I've already been asked by four different guys, so I feel like I've got some options. With Jeremy, I feel like I need more time with him."

"Isn't that the point of a date?" Thomas asked.

"Oh..." she chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose. I was thinking about..." She shook off the thought. "Yeah, I guess Jeremy would be a good idea." She turned to Kari. "How about you?"

"Me?" Kari looked back at the nodding Zoe. Quickly, she faced the banks of monitors. "Hey Davis, wanna be my date?"

Davis's face contorted. He slowly looked back at her. "Could you repeat that?"

"Zoe says I need a date. Let's go together."

He still looked disgusted. Izzy did too, actually. Finally, Davis mumbled, "Uh... 'kay."

"Great!" Kari smiled at Zoe. "Think you can take over? I'd better find a dress before I forget."

Kari switched places with Zoe and took the elevator downstairs. Davis and Izzy stared at her the whole way.

"What the hell just happened?" Davis muttered.

"I thought you liked Kari," Izzy said, turning his way.

"Well sure, but I'm way over that. And that's my-age Kari. You haven't seen my-age Kari." Davis leaned back in his seat and looked up, a dumb grin on his face. Even Izzy's eyes widened in awe. Finally, Davis shook his head and said, "When she hits 18... spoilers, dude... spoilers."

"What's the difference?" Thomas asked. "You can't possibly think you're going as anything other than friends."

"Sure, but four-years-ago Kari? I can't go out with four-years-ago Kari. That's like dating Kari's little sister. Friends or not, that's just weird."

Izzy sighed and said, "But how's that any different from me? Aren't I four-years-ago Izzy?"

Davis blinked. "To be honest, I can't tell the difference."

* * *

Angie Hinomoto thought she too had avoided getting swept up in the drama. She would run into Mikey at some point, tell him he was going with her, and that was going to be that. Her busy work schedule complicated things as she hadn't actually seen Mikey since he returned from the mission, but even then she wasn't worried. She just had to be a little more proactive.

Rewarding as her work was and as much as she enjoyed spending all day with the Digimon, it wore her out. She usually kept her nights short, but made an exception for once, knowing Mikey would never turn in early.

Instead, she found Nene and Ewan in the library area playing ping pong.

"Hi Angie," said Nene in the middle of a return volley. Angie waited for them to finish the point. And she would continue to wait for at least a minute as their shots got faster and faster. The Amano siblings were alarmingly good at ping pong.

Finally Ewan won after the ball glanced off the edge of the table and flew into Angie's hands. "Are you two just good at everything?" Angie asked.

"Yes. Yes we are," Nene said, smiling. "How was your day?"

She wouldn't get a chance to answer, because Mimi put her arm around Angie's shoulder. "Hi folks. Getting excited about Saturday?"

Nene smiled. "I'm sure it's going to be a lovely time. Who are you going with?"

"Well, that depends on your brother. I have no shortage of suitors but I'm being patient. I understand that he has to be nervous asking a cutie like me out."

"I'm standing right here," Ewan muttered, glaring back.

"I know. I'm just saying that if you were to ask I'd say yes."

Ewan turned to Nene. "It's my serve, right?"

"Oh, come on," Mimi pouted. "I think I might really like you. You have to be at least a little interested."

He glanced at her as she posed, hands on her hips. He shook his head and replied, "I don't date my fangirls."

"Fangirls?!" she exclaimed. "And here I thought you were so modest."

"No, he actually has fangirls," Angie said. "It's a little weird."

"They're nice and all but..." Ewan shook his head. "No, I'm not interested in anyone who's just going to fawn over me all day. I don't deserve that."

"Is that all you think I am?" Now Mimi dropped her attitude and sounded genuinely hurt. "Just a fangirl?"

"You've been flirting with me for weeks and I'm sick of it. I'm not interested in you, so stop making those faces at me and trying to convince me that you're somebody worth my time."

Mimi was stunned. She had never been rejected before, at least not so explicitly. Ewan was still glaring at her, giving her nowhere to go but out. "Oh. Well, okay then." She shuffled out, unable to muster the energy to get in a proper last word.

Nene offered a reassuring smile. "If it makes you feel better, Ewan, I never dated my fangirls either."

"Only because it was in your contract," Ewan said, still downbeat.

"What's up, guys?" Mikey strolled in. "Hey, can I play winner?"

"No," Nene and Ewan both said. They knew either of them would inevitably beat Mikey the first few times, but his persistence would eventually take over to the point where he'd win a drawn-out best-of-nineteen series.

"What did Mimi want?"

"She was trying to get Ewan to ask her out," Nene answered. "My little brother's quite the heart-breaker, it seems."

"Aw, why?" He turned to Ewan. "She's really cute."

Ewan looked away. "I don't want to talk about it. Someone else can have her."

Mikey watched her leave and raised an eyebrow. Angie stepped in his way. "Hey, speaking of which, you aren't going with anyone yet, right?"

"Nope." He smiled at Angie. "Guess I should fix that." He turned to Nene. "You wanna go with me, Nene?"

Nene shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Awesome. Who are you going with, Angie?"

"I..." Angie looked down. "I'm still working on that."

He rubbed the top of her head. "Whoever it is is gonna be lucky. See you 'round." He walked off, not noticing her stewing.

Once out of earshot, Ewan asked, "Did you actually want to go with him? Like for real? It's really hard to tell with you."

"Of course not!" Angie shouted, looking back. "I was just sort of assuming we would. Makes things a whole lot easier."

Nene nodded. "It really does. Why do you think I said yes? There isn't a single person here that I'm interested in. Very disappointing really."

"You said it." Ewan bounced the ball on the table. "Okay, fourteen-thirteen."

Angie didn't go anywhere. She just found a seat and watched her friends play.

* * *

Ken Ichijouji never had to worry about finding a date. Instead, he had to worry about his choice of wardrobe and what kind of message it sent. The catalogs Jeri passed around had no "definitely on a date but not committed to calling it romantic" section. After deliberating in his room for almost an hour, Christopher walked in, pointed at a gray button-up shirt with dark slacks and told him to order that.

"This was actually a good choice," Ken said, tying his navy blue tie. He was minutes away from meeting Rika for the dance and didn't feel at all out of place compared to whatever pantsuit she would inevitably go with. "Thanks."

"Actually, I pointed to it at random," Christopher said. He finished with his tie, looked in the mirror, frowned, and took it off. He unfastened the top button on his shirt and nodded. "No sense worrying about what some girl thinks."

They headed downstairs, splitting up immediately. While Christopher went straight to the hall, Ken found Davis and Kari. Davis was a little more dressed up, with a coat over his shirt. Not that it would remain on once the dancing started. He was more impressed with Kari's light pink outfit, a short layered skirt that fell well above the knees.

"You look wonderful, Kari," said Ken. Kari smiled and thanked him.

Davis checked the time on his D3, which he had fastened to a chain like a pocketwatch. "The hell's your girl? Can't imagine Rika taking too long to get ready."

They walked over to the library together, which let them sit down as they waited for Rika to emerge from Leo Tower. Davis was the first to spot her. He almost didn't recognize her. When he did, he stood up in awe and mumbled, "Holy..."

It was a calf-length white sleeveless dress, revealing open-toe heeled shoes. Her hair extended to her bare shoulders and although little of it was visible, she was wearing makeup. If not for the red ribbon around her slender waist, they would have mistaken it for a wedding dress.

"Okay, _now_ I'm excited for this dance," Davis said, walking up to her.

Ken stood, but he didn't move at first. He couldn't be sure what he was looking at or what it meant. All he knew was that she was absolutely beautiful and impossibly his.

Kari put a hand on his shoulder and smiled. "Just remember- she did this for you." She followed Davis in greeting her, very careful not to comment on her dress.

She left that to Ken, who finally remembered how to walk. He was barely able to mumble, "You uh... you look nice."

Rika shrugged. "Well, they said we were supposed to look nice. Now come on, we're late."

* * *

Tai Kamiya was amazed at how well this came together. He wasn't expecting anything more than the usual party set-up- a few token lights and someone's CD playing songs meant more for mingling than dancing. This was a proper LED light array, mounted to the stage with equipment and know-how he didn't think they had. At the center of it was an actual mixer and turntable. Whatever was going on, he started to buy into the hype.

He found Koichi and Tommy setting up the refreshment stand. There were sandwiches and other random snack trays, one full of those digibytes he had heard Mimi gushing over. A water station and a soda dispenser lurked nearby. Koichi saw Tai and handed him a small but full glass with a straw. Tai took a sip and asked, "Milkshake?"

Koichi nodded. "Yes, there is apparently a milkshake factory nearby. Strange, but aren't those great?"

"Yeah," Tai looked around the room as he finished his drink. "Well, so far I'm impressed. Wish we had a reason to celebrate, but..." He sighed. "You did a good job. Assuming your DJ isn't going to try to kill us all."

"Hey, there you are!" said Sora, storming towards him. Tai had been trying to figure out a way not to spend the whole night staring at her perfectly constructed face, flawless hair, and short red strapless dress. Instead, she grabbed him by the wrist and led him to the dance floor. "Technically you're my date so technically you have to dance with me."

"I don't even know what kind of music they got." he said. She didn't let go of his wrist. "What if it's something really sappy?"

"Tai, I don't care if it's chanting monks; we're going to figure this out."

"Who's even..." Tai turned around and got his answer...

"Izzy...?" he and Sora mumbled in unison. The night's DJ plugged his laptop to the mixer and put on a pair of bulky headphones. He tweaked a few settings, adjusted his bowtie, then nodded at JP in the corner. The house lights dimmed, the strobes and lasers fired, and the bass floored everyone as energetic house music filled the room. It drowned out the cheering that followed.

Tai and Sora looked at each other. She shrugged, pulled her hand away and started dancing to the upbeat groove. No awkward touching, no clumsy footwork... just dancing.

Mimi dragged Joe next to them, practically crashing into Tai. Somehow they were covered in glowsticks. Mimi smiled and attached a string of them to Tai. She kept her hands around his neck and the grin on her face as she started bouncing to the music. He caught a glimpse over his shoulder at Sora dancing with Joe, occasionally taking his hand. He didn't care; he just went with it. Tai looked at Mimi again, returned the smile, put his hands around her waist and swayed with her.

Again peeking over Mimi's shoulder, Sora was calling for somebody. It was Kari, who came in a flash, grooving along with them. They playfully rubbed up against Joe; he played down his embarrassment, laughed it off and put his arms around each of their shoulders.

Suddenly Mimi stopped, frowned, and dashed off. Tai shrugged and joined the other three, putting his own arms around Sora and Kari. They swayed in a circle until Mimi returned, shoving a reluctant Izzy into it.

"Mimi, I can't just leave the table, I have to set up-"

Mimi put a finger to his lips. "One song. For one song, we're all together."

Izzy looked around; Sora and Joe were already closing in on him. Kari took his hands and pulled them back and forth. He sighed and finally joined in.

And there they were. After fighting for their lives in the Digital World, after being pulled in six years later, after going through hell all over again, after losing two of their companions, and after years fruitlessly hunting for them... they still smiled. The six digidestined were joined in a circle, free of worries and inhibitions, dancing together like idiots. A tear streamed down Tai's face.

* * *

Kari Kamiya was disappointed that her body wouldn't let her continue dancing. Izzy's setlist was proving to be a big hit, sticking to upbeat pieces from a wide range of styles and keeping a good chunk of the initial crowd on the floor for as long as their legs could hold out. By the time Kari's started to give, she had joined all sorts of groups, both alone and with Davis. Their decision to swap partners with Jeremy and Zoe was the last straw as Jeremy's concept of a tango proved to be a little too much for her.

Thankfully, Koichi had kept a few of the tables out, moving them to the courtyard to offer a break from the loud music. Some of the Digimon were outside watching. He and Izzy had promised a second, smaller set just for them in the habitat the next day; humans and Digimon didn't mingle well on a dance floor. None of them bothered Kari as she sat, nor Davis when he joined her with two milkshakes.

The first sip was amazing. "Wow, these are really good. I might have ten of these tonight," she said.

"Am I gonna have to carry you back to your room?" Davis replied.

Kari laughed. "I'm having a great time. Thanks for being such a good date."

Davis forced a grin. "Anything for you, Kari." He looked down into his milkshake.

Her smile faded. "What's wrong?" He only sighed. She reached out and touched his arm. "Davis, please don't say you still have feelings for me. I thought we were past that. Especially here. You've been such a good friend to me."

He shook his head. "Naw, it's not that. Sounds weird me being the one to say it but... night like this, I wish TK were here."

Kari nodded sadly. "I know what you mean."

"We worked so hard to pull that off. Especially me and Ken and Cody and Yolei... and in the end it was just an old man from Norstein's group." Davis turned to Kari, frowning. "I'm not gonna lie... I did all that for you."

Shaking her head, Kari said, "I appreciate it, but you don't have to worry about me. I mean, of course I want to know he's safe and see him again, but it's okay. No matter what, I'm not going to let it destroy me. And sure I miss him, you know how close we were, but even then..." She smiled. "I've got you."

Davis raised an eyebrow. "I'm your new TK?"

"That's... one way of putting it." A faint grin formed. "I need a friend like that. Somebody I feel like I can share everything with. Someone I know can be honest with me."

His head fell. Kari leaned in closer. "I really do think of you like that. You're honest with everybody."

"Not as much as I want to be right now," he muttered.

"Why? What is it? You can tell me."

He shook his head. "No, I... it ain't right. He's not here."

"Who, TK?" She leaned back, staring vacantly at him. "What's wrong with TK?" At first he didn't answer, but she persisted. "Davis, please. It may not matter now anyway."

Davis sighed. "I wouldn't say he's always been honest with you."

"What do you mean?"

He stared into the distance. "You're an amazing girl. You don't understand how easy it is to fall in love with you."

"What..." It struck her. As she always did whenever it came up, she deflected it. "You said you-"

"Kari, you know exactly how I feel about you," he said, shaking his head. "Like you said, I'm honest with you. You just gotta trust me when I say there are things about TK I can't tell you."

She chose her words carefully as the subject became unavoidable: "Listen, I'm not blind. I've noticed the way he acts around me." She shook her head. "But he knew we could never be... like that. And if he thought we could, then why wouldn't he tell me? He could tell me anything."

"Not that," he mumbled. "Definitely not that."

"Why not? What's the worst that could happen?"

He froze, staring back at her with no way to answer the question. Not because he didn't know how she'd react if TK had confessed something. Because he knew _exactly_ the path they ended up on after TK did.

She leaned in closer, eyes becoming frantic. "What is it? Davis, you know something. What am I missing here?"

Finally, Davis cringed and said the only thing he could: "Spoilers."

Kari's eyes widened, struck by panic. Her teeth clenched and her head began to shake. "No. No, you can't do that. Are you saying something happens between me and TK?"

"You know I'm not supposed to tell you stuff like that. Hell, I don't want to talk about it even if I could." He quickly stood up. "You want another drink?"

She grabbed his coat. "Davis, please. I just need to know everything ends up okay. I don't care about the details, but I know I would never do anything to hurt him."

"Just..." Davis pulled away from her. "Just keep thinking that, okay?" He walked away, back inside.

"Davis!" She cried, unable to muster the strength to chase after him. "Davis, please!" As he retreated, she could only imagine how bad it was. Suddenly all the worst scenarios crept in. Once they took hold, her cry had been reduced to a whimper.

"Davis..."

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa wouldn't have dreamed of leaving the hall. Even when she forced herself to take a break from the dancing, she clinged to the wall and watched everybody else enjoy themselves. The atmosphere was right up her alley and she was happy to see her cohorts diving into the excitement. She loved seeing JP abandon all fear and dance like a fool, and the adoration he received in response. She loved seeing Suzie drag Cody around the hall and the tiny smiles from him that suggested he was enjoying himself despite his protests. She loved seeing Thomas and Yoshi dancing- actual, authentic dancing with moves that put all these children to shame.

She did not love seeing Ewan. He spent the entire time with Mikey, Nene and Angie. He danced, yes, and he was smiling most of the time. But she saw a sense of hesitation within him, as if he wasn't enjoying himself as much as he was letting on.

Joe handed her a milkshake as he sipped a cup of water. "Can we sit down? You run me pretty hard out there." Mimi didn't answer him. He rolled his eyes and stood next to her.

Ewan was on Mimi's mind more often than she was comfortable with. Calling it love was premature. She wouldn't even admit to calling it a crush; she was way too good for that. She certainly admired him though. He was a very capable cook, a brilliant mind, and surely had all the bravery and inner strength that came with being a Fusion Fighter. She wondered why nobody else saw this in him.

She was hurt that he turned her down. The rejection stung, but wasn't the worst part. Ewan seemed outright repulsed by her flirting, and he wasn't shy to say it. For her, in all her strength and glory, to be dismissed as a mere fangirl was hard to take. Ewan seemed so harmless and so kind that she still couldn't believe he could hurt her so easily.

What frustrated her the most about Ewan is how he turned away her advances without a second thought yet still seemed unsettled. He was neither the quiet nerd frightened by her presence, nor the vain hottie that took her in stride. Mimi could tell that Ewan was somehow unfulfilled and discontent. She was desperate to probe further, but his shooting her down put a stop to it.

"Are you really going to stare at him all night?" Joe asked. "I get that you like him and all, but he wasn't interested. Besides, you said you wanted to go to this with me. It's a bit rude to-"

Mimi's sigh cut him off. "I'm sorry Joe. I should have known you were in love with me."

Joe narrowed an eyebrow and muttered, "Where did you pull that out of?"

"Yoshi!" Joe's question went unanswered as Mimi hailed the dancing queen over after her set. Yoshi leaned against the wall and caught her breath as the digidestined continued her praise. "I didn't know you could dance like that!"

"Yeah," Yoshi said with a sigh. "My mom was pretty pushy about getting us lessons in all that stuff. Dance... piano..."

"You play piano?!" Mimi clutched Yoshi's wrist. "If we do ever find Matt, we're starting a band." She let go and saw Yoshi's partner going for drinks. "So you and Thomas?"

"Don't read into it. As far as all that goes, I'm a lost cause."

Mimi clicked her tongue. "Any girl whose love life has gotten them chased by paparazzi isn't a lost cause."

Yoshi raised an eyebrow. "Who told you about that?"

"Palmon and Lalamon are besties. I get all the dirt on you. And I bet I could fix you up with someone."

"I bet not. I'm not interested in younger men."

Mimi slapped her on the shoulder. "Oh, you sound like Sora." She grabbed Joe's arm and pulled him closer. "Hey, Joe's really mature. And he's a doctor!"

"That's not worth much here," Joe muttered.

Yoshi narrowed her eyes. "I can't date the guy who does our monthly physicals." She sighed. "I'm trying to talk myself into one of the new kids, but that's not going well either."

"I know what you mean." Mimi folded her arms. "Good stock, but really tricky. I'm having a devil of a time with Ewan."

"And I know better than to fight you for him," Yoshi said, getting Mimi to nod aggressively. "Mikey's the best option, but the last time I talked to him he passed out."

"That's a red flag. What about Christopher? I can talk to Ken if you need info."

"Christopher?! Not a chance!" Yoshi shouted. "If you think for a second that I'd go after a selfish, insensitive brat like him, then... then..." She just steamed instead of finished. She ended up huffing, "Who the hell gave him a digivice?"

Mimi's eyes were wide, and Yoshi's outburst attracted some outside attention, including Christopher himself. He just smirked at Yoshi and resumed his passive swaying to the music. Mimi saw it, then turned back to Yoshi. A grin emerged, then a chuckle escaped. Then she said, "Now we're getting somewhere." She dashed off without another word.

"The hell?" Yoshi looked at Joe for some sort of explanation.

Joe pushed his glasses up. "When she suggested me, you shrugged it off. She suggests Christopher and you have that kind of reaction." He smiled at her. "I appreciate that at least you're not interested in me."

As he walked away, Yoshi took another glance at Christopher. She looked back at Joe, then Mimi. Then she sneered.

"Dammit."

* * *

Rika Nonaka tried to clear her mind as Ken rubbed her bare feet. She considered it appropriate to look her absolute best. She actually enjoyed the occasional dance as long as the music wasn't too mushy. She loved keeping everyone on their toes and seeing everyone surprised that she could look like this whenever she felt like it. In truth, she had long since gotten over her stigma about dresses and makeup. Now they were less things to avoid and more like certain modify cards she rarely used but kept in her deck just in case the perfect moment arrived.

What she hadn't planned for was extensive dancing in heels. Her friendship with Henry and her whatever-ship with Ken had accidentally made her friends with Yolei. That meant being on the dance floor far longer than she had expected. It was terribly fun; both she and Henry struggled to keep their exuberance in check, eventually surrendering to the music. For once they smiled and laughed as much as Takato- something they really hoped wasn't photographed. By the time she sat down, her feet were killing her. Ken offered to massage them, which felt great even if she felt the need to check his face to make sure he wasn't one of those guys who really went for that sort of thing.

When he finished, Ken looked at his hands and turned up his nose. "I don't suppose you have any hand sanitizer around..."

"Sorry, left it in my other ballgown," Rika quipped. She stretched her feet out, not bothering to put her shoes back on.

"You really do look lovely," Ken said, eyes straight ahead at the dance floor.

"Yeah, yeah..." she muttered, trying to keep her eyes forward but cheating to Ken far too often. "You look all right too," she added. Ken looked at her and smiled.

Before they could have anything resembling a moment, Kari stormed up to them. "Ken!" She put her shaking hands on his shoulders. Her eyes were manic as they locked onto his. "What happens to me and TK?"

Now it was Ken's turn to turn frantic. His head darted towards Rika, but she could only shrug. "Uhh..." Finally he returned to Kari. "What do you mean?"

"Davis said something happens between us in the future. I need to know what it is."

"Kari, you know we're not supposed to talk about that. What if we end up going back to when we left?"

"They really still think there's a chance of that?" Rika asked, totally uninterested in Kari's drama but more than willing to change the subject for Ken's sake.

"Yes, Rika. Especially after what Mikey and Christopher told us about digiquartz."

Kari clutched Ken's shoulders. "Ken, please."

Ken removed her hands and held them together. "Even if I could tell you, I didn't get the whole story. All I know is that you were very special to TK. Maybe too special." He sighed. "More special than he was willing to admit."

"So Davis was right?" Kari bit her lip.

"I don't know what happened. It seemed fine one day and the next it was... different." He released her hands. "But I do know he had very strong feelings for you for a long time."

"But why wouldn't he say anything?"

"It's one of the hardest things to tell somebody. Especially with how close you two were." Ken rubbed her shoulder. "But hey, it's all in the past."

"Maybe for you," she sniffled, shuffling away to fetch another round of refreshments.

Once she was gone, Rika huffed, "What an idiot."

Ken shook his head. "She really didn't think it would be a problem. It just ended up getting a little messy."

"Not her. TK. They knew each other for how long and he can't say anything?"

He scooted over until he next to her. "You have to remember just how long it was for them."

She looked away. "Who cares? We can go out and put our lives on the line against all these monsters, but that's somehow too hard? Ridiculous..."

Rika kept looking away, but Ken kept his eyes on her. He waited until she turned back, then leaned forward and kissed her.

Her eyes widened, and remained fixated on him as he pulled away. Rika exhaled, then grabbed his head and pulled him in for another. She held it longer this time, clutching his hair tighter and tighter, only pushing him away once she was satisfied.

Both of them sat straight up and stared at the dancers. Ken smiled faintly. "An idiot, huh?"

"The biggest," she replied.

* * *

Jeri Katou didn't want to stop dancing. She had been out with Takato the entire time and having the time of her life. The event was turning out tremendously; she was thrilled that not only were her suggestions adding so much to the evening, Koichi's reputation was bound to improve. Even better, even though many of the ideas were hers and she did plenty of work beforehand, once it started she was free to enjoy it however she wanted.

Yes, there was a twinge of guilt that she was spending the night with Takato while Koichi supervised everything. But it was inevitable; between Tommy and Mimi, too many people knew about her affair already and she wasn't going to risk any more prying eyes. And if she couldn't dance with Koichi, then why not dance with Takato? He was a terrible dancer with zero rhythm, but he put his all into it and she wouldn't have it any other way.

"Okay, time out," Takato said as a song winded down and transitioned into another. "I think it's time for a drink."

"Oh, uh..." Jeri was just as parched, but was trying to avoid the refreshment table. Being out with Takato was one thing; she didn't want to rub it in Koichi's face. But Takato linked arms with her and pulled her over. When she forced herself to face the table, she saw Koichi along the back wall, staring at them. The moment they made eye contact, he looked down.

"Hold on..." she said.

Takato didn't stop. "No way. I need to try one of these milkshakes everyone's raving about."

When they reached the table, Koichi hurriedly walked past them. "Tommy, I need some fresh air. I'll be back in a bit."

Tommy nodded, but frowned. He took and filled Takato's order for two milkshakes, hesitating when he served Jeri's.

As Takato turned around and enjoyed his first few sips, Jeri leaned in close to Tommy and whispered, "Is he okay?"

"I don't know. He's been watching you two an awful lot."

Jeri sighed. She glanced at Takato to make sure he couldn't hear, then said, "I wish I could talk to him. Think you could try?"

"I was afraid you'd say that, but I'll see what I can do." Tommy leaned back and pointed at her. "But for the record, I'm on his team."

She thanked him, took her glass and joined Takato. Jeri felt bad asking Tommy to manage Koichi, but she wasn't going to let that spoil her night. Her first sip of milkshake, however, did the trick.

"What's wrong?" Takato asked, noticing the troubled look on her face.

She stared at her glass, then marched out of the castle. Suddenly, finding Koichi was imperative.

He was in the courtyard, alone, staring at the night sky. He must have heard her marching towards him, because he looked at her and shook his head. "I can't do this anymore." he put his hands on the sides of her shoulders. "I know I-"

Jeri shook his hands off and held up her glass. "Where did you get these?"

"Uh, there's a factory run by some Gekomon that-"

"Jeri!" shouted Takato. Koichi took a step back as his rival joined them. "What's going on?"

"We may have a problem," Jeri replied. "These milkshakes are alcoholic."

Both boys responded with blank faces. Takato said, "Someone spiked the shakes?"

Jeri shook her head. "There's a weird glitch in the Digital World where milk affects us the same way as alcohol. It wasn't just our world. Sora had it in hers too."

"But they use milk in the kitchen all the time."

"We get special treated milk down the river. This is natural."

"Tasted the same to me. How can you tell?" asked Koichi.

"I can taste alcohol in anything. I've been serving it in my dad's bar since I was ten."

"That can't be legal," Koichi mumbled.

Takato shrugged. "So a few people get a little tipsy. It's a party, right?"

"But they don't know what they're drinking," Jeri said. "It's really easy to have too many. And I don't want to think about what would happen then."

Koichi looked down. "We have to tell someone in Command."

"No way!" Takato exclaimed. "You don't want them thinking you screwed this up too."

"Takato's right," Jeri said. "We have to fix this, but we can't let anyone think something went wrong. How much is left?"

"We just tapped the second barrel," Koichi answered, shoulders slumping. "This is terrible. We've passed out so much already. People keep wanting more. They don't realize what's going on and it's my fault. I'm going to die... again."

Takato put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, don't think like that. We'll take care of this. I don't know if nobody will notice, but at least we can make sure nobody gets hurt. We've got your back, right, Jeri?"

Jeri smiled weakly. "Of course."

Koichi sighed. "Thanks. Suppose we have to figure out our first move..." He looked at Jeri's glass, still mostly full. "Are you gonna finish that?" he asked.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 11: "How Far This Can Go"**  
In this episode, as the dance concludes, Tai struggles to hold back his feelings for Sora, while his absence puts Izzy in a position to take care of Kari. Koichi regrets bringing Takato and Jeri closer together. Rika is locked out of her room and is forced to crash with Marcus.

" _You're with me. And there's one verse left. So dance with me like you mean all that."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** Per request, the deleted scene is up on my Tumblr page (firstagent). Search the neverworld tag to find it.

The "entry criteria" isn't going to be a huge mystery or anything. Thomas laid it out pretty accurately. The only place where it gets dicey is with the international digidestined in 02 (and, by extention, Meiko if she ever enters the Digital World in tri.). For sake of brevity, we'll say there's a cutoff for each world.

This is the first chapter where tri. starts to have a tangible influence, as the trailer with the Koumi tease was released just before the time of writing. References here include Izzy's bowtie and Mimi assuming Joe's in love with her. Expect more peppered into the next few chapters, particularly episodes 12 and 13, which were written after the first movie aired.

Barring anything major, I'm not going to undo any inconsistencies tri. creates in past chapters. However, a recent interview with tri. staff about how Takeru and Hikari feel about each other prompted a slight rewrite in her scene with Davis and will prompt a few more next episode. We're just trying to stay as consistent as possible with new information until the inevitable moment when our dreams of staying in continuity are dashed forever.

Mimi's line about Yoshi sounding like Sora is both a reference to them having the same dub voice actress, and a CD drama where Sora says she's not interested in younger men (leaving Mimi and Hikari to argue about who Koushiro wrote his love letter to).

The alcoholic milk dilemma is obviously in reference to the dub of Tamers calling sake milkshakes. However, the claim that it was consistent in Sora's Digital World is a reference to 02, where she and the gang go to a saloon, pull up to the bar and are served tall mugs of milk. This is consistent in any language.

gG-XNrUqyzo  
B003C8C1FY


	12. 11- How Far This Can Go

**Neverworld**

 _By the time the curtain's falling,_  
 _they'll be standing up and screaming out our names._  
 _Can't you hear the future calling?_  
 _We'll go all the way and never be the same._  
 _\- Bowling For Soup, "How Far This Can Go"_

 **Episode 11**

Takato Matsuki only had one way to respond to Koichi's crisis: at the first sign of distress, he was hellbent on fixing it. Faced with the possibility of a bunch of teenagers getting drunk without realizing it, he attacked the problem head on rather than worry about the possible damage. Jeri and Koichi followed him to the refreshment table and watched him go to work.

First Takato shouted for Tommy, who filled up a milkshake for Kazu, then grinned at the tamer and joked, "Another one already? I might have to cut you off!"

"Uh, funny you say that..." Takato looked back at Jeri and Koichi. Both of them were cringing as Tommy took a sip from the glass he had stashed under the table. "You need to stop serving those."

"What?" Kazu exclaimed. "Are you crazy? These are the best part of the night! All the girls are taken, so I'm just hanging around for the beverages. Why would you want to shut this down?"

Tommy agreed. "Yeah, Takato, we just opened more. We can't let it go to waste."

"Uh..." If Takato told Kazu, everybody would know in minutes. He tried to lie. "Do you know where that milk comes from?"

"As long as it's not a bunch of Gekomon working as slaves, I don't care," Kazu said with a shrug.

"It is from the Gekomon, but they're unionized now," Tommy said. "It's fair trade."

Kazu toasted him. "Sweet. Cheers." Tommy clinked glasses.

All Takato could do was wait for him to finish and leave. Kazu was in no hurry, nursing his drink as he watched the dancers, admired the light effects and nodded to the music. As he stood there, Kari came for another helping and Mikey picked up a whole round for him and his friends. Jeri put a hand on Takato's shoulder. Koichi gritted his teeth.

A new song started, one Kazu seemed to like as his nodding turned into a full sway. Jeri looked at Takato and Koichi, shrugged, and asked, "Kazu, want to dance?" Kazu grinned, put his drink down, grabbed Jeri's hand and pulled her to the dance floor.

"Your sacrifice will not be forgotten," Takato mumbled.

Koichi leaned over the table at Tommy. "The milk is alcoholic."

"What do you mean?" Tommy asked. He took another sip from his glass. "Tastes normal to me."

"Jeri says it's a Digital World glitch where milk can get you drunk. That's why we need to stop."

"I don't know, Koichi. It's been a pretty big hit. We almost had a riot when we had to stop serving it to change barrels." Tommy looked at the cask and frowned. "Barrels..."

Koichi nodded with a grimace. "We missed some red flags."

"Tommy has a point though," said Takato. "We don't want to cause a scene. We can't let Command find out about-"

"Find out about what?" said Izzy, standing next to them. He signaled for Tommy to make him a drink as Takato and Koichi watched him, stiff, their only movement coming from their trembling hands. When Tommy hesitated, Izzy said, "Please, I have three minutes and forty-eight seconds until I need to be back up there."

As Tommy fixed his milkshake, Izzy raised an eyebrow at Takato. "What are we not supposed to know?" He got his drink, took one sip, swished it around his mouth for a second and set his glass down. He frowned at Koichi. "This is untreated, isn't it?"

Koichi's head sunk. "You know about the milk here then?" Takato asked.

"I make it a point to know things. It's what I do."

"I am so sorry," Koichi bowed. "This was going so well and... I had no idea. We tried so hard to make this perfect and I screwed up again. This is all I have and I can't do it right..."

Takato saw how close Koichi was to tears and turned to Izzy. "Do you really have to tell Tai about all this?"

Izzy kept a straight face, but picked up his glass. "I don't have time to tell Tai. I have to get back on stage." He took a long drink. "The good news is that the night's not over yet and one shake isn't enough to do much. You still have time to fix this." He set his glass down and walked away. "Please make sure you do."

Koichi sighed in relief. Takato did more: "Okay, Tommy, you're just going to have to make sure people don't overdo it."

"Well what do I tell them?" Tommy asked.

"Tell them not everyone's had a chance to have one and you want to save some for everybody," Koichi said. "And after a while we'll just say the second barrel ran out too."

Tommy stared into the distance. He didn't like disappointing people. "Uh... okay."

"All right, sounds like a plan," Takato said, patting Koichi's shoulder. "See, we can get this under control. We'll be fine."

Sighing, Koichi said, "You're too nice to me, Takato."

"Hey, no problem. I'm sure you'd have my back." Takato turned around. "I better go see what Kazu did with Jeri."

As Takato left, Koichi clenched his teeth and looked up at Tommy. The pain on his face didn't need explanation. Tommy took his own glass and handed it to Koichi. "Here. You need this more than I do."

* * *

Christopher Aonuma wasn't a dancer, but he recognized the impending spectacle and hovered close to it. Nursing a milkshake in her hand, Nene started a set of choreographed dance moves, then stopped halfway through and insisted on teaching them all to Angie.

"C'mon, right hand out, right hand up, then the same with the left," Nene said, demonstrating. Angie followed in step, rolling her eyes. "Perfect! Now here's the next step..."

Kenta slid in between Christopher and Ewan. "What's going on?"

"Don't look at me!" Angie shouted.

"Look at her, Kenta, she's a star!" Nene shouted.

"Are you guys pretending to be idols or something?" Zoe asked, joining the group on Jeremy's arm.

Nene grinned back. "We're not pretending. Get in here!" Zoe laughed as Jeremy pushed her in. "We'll need boys for this too!"

Jeremy and Kenta quickly jumped in behind Zoe and Angie. Christopher pushed Mikey behind Nene. Ewan put his hand to his forehead and sighed. "Get the music going and the lights flashing and she's like a different person," he muttered.

Nene pointed at Ewan and Christopher. "You two! Find two more girls!"

Christopher saw Yoshi out of the corner of his eye, reached over and grabbed her wrist. "Hey, what the-?" He pulled her into the line. "You've got some nerve, the hell are you-"

Nene cut her off. "Perfect! Ewan, go get Mimi."

"I am not getting Mimi!" Ewan shouted back. "Besides, technically I'm Angie's date."

"That's fine," Kenta said. Keeping his voice down, he mumbled, "Hey Mimi, some of the girls want to do a dance number and we need one more."

Instantly, Mimi was standing next to him. "Count me in!"

"Wait, that's what we're doing?" Yoshi said in disgust. She turned to Christopher, who shrugged.

"Yep," Nene said. "Now watch and learn..."

It took twenty minutes to teach, but once Nene felt her troupe had the routine down, she ran up to Izzy's table to request a song, then ran back once he found it. Once it started, she marched them into the center of the dance floor. The crowd parted as she, flanked by her crew, marched to the center. At the right moment, they stopped and Mimi raised her arm in time. On the beat, Angie followed, then Nene, then Zoe, then a Yoshi who still wasn't sure why she was here. But she went with it as they synchronized every hand gesture, hip shake and leg kick to the rhythm.

They were already the center of attention, and were getting tons of cheers by the time the song reached its midway point. Then they raised their hands and fell backwards. The guys ran in and caught them all (Christopher even caught Yoshi, which she had doubts about the whole time). They grabbed the girls around their waists and spun them around once before setting them back down. The room damn near exploded.

The final part of the song continued to work the boys into the action, paying off with the ten of them in a line with their hands in the air. Izzy stopped the music, certain no one was going to hear it over the thunder of applause. It gave them a chance to bask in glory.

"That was awesome!" Mimi shouted, grabbing Angie's hands. As Angie chuckled, Mimi let go and wrapped an arm around Ewan. "And you were fantastic."

"Yep, that happened," Ewan said, pushing out of her hold. "Hope you enjoyed it." He wandered off.

Before Mimi could follow, Nene hugged her. "Great job. You were amazing."

Mimi's face lit up again. "So were you! You could go pro!" She turned and found Yoshi. "Hey Yoshi! Can she be in our band too?!"

Yoshi rolled her eyes and replied, "Sure."

Next to her, Zoe was still in fits as she clung to Jeremy. "That was the craziest thing I've ever done," she said.

"Yeah, that ranks up there." Yoshi eyed Christopher. "You had to get me involved, didn't you?"

Christopher folded his arms. "You enjoyed it. Don't lie."

"Hey, I gotta ask..." Yoshi pointed at Izzy. "Didn't it seem like that singer sounded a lot like..." She found the idea so ridiculous she didn't want to say it. Still, she eyed Nene carefully.

He shrugged. "I couldn't tell who it was with all that damn auto-tune. It could have been one of those virtual idols for all I know."

Yoshi groaned. "Isn't that stuff the worst?"

"Auto-tune ruins everything. But you've got decent moves. If you're sick of dancing with blondie, come find me."

He walked away before it dawned on Yoshi. When it did, she muttered, "You're one to call somebody 'blondie.'"

Nene was still enjoying her triumph, arms around Mikey and Angie. "Gotta say that was pretty cool," Mikey said. He released Angie and started to wobble.

"Hey, are you okay?!" Angie asked, positioning herself to catch him. "I forgot the pillow."

Mikey righted himself. "Nah, I'm fine. Just a bit intense there." He grinned.

Angie narrowed an eye. "You guys had the easy part." She faced Nene. "Hope I didn't screw up too much. I'm not trained or anything."

Nene put her hands on Angie's cheeks. "Are you kidding, you were outstanding." Then she kissed Angie on the lips, let go, and faced Mikey. "I think this calls for a drink." She took his arm and they walked away.

Angie felt her lips as Kenta watched, commenting, "Well, I was going to ask about you going with Ewan, but..."

"I think that was just her showing appreciation." She watched Nene and Mikey weave through the crowd together. Then she snapped her head towards Kenta. "Wait, did you say me and Ewan? No, that was just convenient. Don't be stupid." She sighed. "Even if I did like him, if he's turning down Mimi, what chance would I have?"

"Well..." Kenta turned away, fiddling with his thumbs. "Just saying that if you ever need someone to go with... you know, when it's convenient... I'm always free."

Angie tried to keep a straight face. She thought she had a simple working relationship with Kenta. She should have known better. "I'll... keep that in mind. Thanks," she said politely.

As Kenta walked away, she turned back to Mikey and Nene. As much as both of them insisted they were just friends, they were awfully close to each other. While Angie denied having any interest in Mikey, she certainly wasn't about to spend the rest of her time in the Digital World alone. If he was off the table... she suddenly worried she'd be taking Kenta up on his offer.

* * *

Henry Wong danced with his baby sister, twirling Suzie around as Yolei insisted on taking a turn with Cody. Suzie was harder to twirl than he remembered or imagined, and she was busting out moves he didn't think she was old enough to know. He was still coming around to the idea that she wasn't a baby.

He knew there was no excuse for still thinking that way. They had been in the Digital World for eight years. No, they didn't age physically, but Suzie had eight years experience of being thirteen. By now, she was really good at it. She had her phases, fleeting interests in various fads, and her occasional rebellious streak. Henry came to accept that her promotion to active duty and moving in with him wasn't so much due to Command's meddling as it was Suzie manipulating the system and playing some of the brightest minds in the castle.

As the beat fluidly transitioned to a new song, Yolei restored the original pairs, pulling Henry close while returning Cody to Suzie. It wasn't the first time Henry had to deal with Suzie and boys. She had always had a confounding love/hate relationship with Tommy. While they were at each other's throats much of the time, Henry had caught the occasional rumor about someone hearing that someone saw the two sharing a kiss. But those two always acted like children around each other, and any relationship they would have would always be childish. "Childish" simply never applied to Cody.

It was evident in the way they he danced with her. Henry treated her like a little girl, never doing more than holding her hands. Cody had his hands on her shoulders, back, waist, or whatever was appropriate for the music. Never anything lewd; he fulfilled his obligation to be a gentleman and never crossed any lines. His face didn't give much away. Instead Henry saw the effort Cody put into making sure she was having a good time. And she was, partly due to the act of dancing to upbeat music and partly due to watching Cody do the same. She was rewarded whenever a smile escaped from his face. Secretly, he was loving this.

"You can look at me too, you know," said Yolei, pulling herself closer to him. "Are you seriously that worried about her? Do you need me to write a letter of recommendation for Cody? Because I will."

Henry faced her and snickered. "Wouldn't hurt. But I think I'm okay with this. Besides, this is a lot less dangerous than sending her out to fight."

"I'm not sure every over-protective big brother would agree with that." Yolei winked and kissed him on the cheek.

The song faded, a low bass riff carrying it into the next. Cody and Suzie stood motionless, hands held and staring at each other. He leaned forward only slightly, enough for Suzie to plow ahead and pull him into a kiss. It only lasted a second, but there was no containing the smiles on either of their faces.

Henry looked away as the music intensified. "Okay, didn't need to see that..."

Yolei, meanwhile, punched the air and shouted, "Nice work, Cody! Perfecto!"

* * *

Koichi Kimura lingered in the back of the refreshment area, doing his best to monitor Tommy's milkshake distribution. He seemed to be doing a better job serving smaller portions, but Koichi had no idea who all was coming back for refills and who was on their first round. It was hard for him to focus. He wanted to wallow in regret over another crisis on his watch, something that could never be erased no matter how much they were able to mitigate the damage.

During a break in the drink requests, Tommy left his post and joined him. "We'll be fine," he said. "I'm sure the problem's just exaggerated. I've had a couple of those and I don't feel a thing."

Koichi sighed. "I just feel worthless. I overlooked something and it endangered everybody again. I just want to get it right for once."

"But that's not the only thing, is it?"

In the middle of the floor, Koichi saw Jeri and Takato dancing happily, with friends, without worries. "I'm in love with her. And I really think she's in love with me. But if she can't handle leaving Takato, then I'm stuck. It's getting harder. And every time I see them together, I have more and more doubts." He watched Jeri pull Takato closer to kiss him.

Tommy patted Koichi's shoulder. "I really wish I could help you. I know I don't know anything about this sort of thing and I shouldn't even know about you two. And you know I'm on your side. I just think that if it's starting to hurt this much, and if Jeri won't do anything about it... you might have to make the hard decisions instead."

"That's the problem. They're hard."

The music stopped suddenly and the lights froze in place. A round of cheering went up throughout the room, which Tommy joined. Koichi just frowned and looked up at the stage as Izzy turned on a microphone.

"How is everybody doing?" More cheers followed. Izzy smiled. "I'm glad to hear it. I'm going to take a quick break, and then I'll go for another hour or so. Is that acceptable?" The cheers were lighter this time, with one or two shouts asking him to go all night.

Izzy ignored them. "I'm told that you went through the milkshakes pretty fast and they've just about run out. They wanted me to pass on that you should only come and get some if you haven't had any yet. Everybody should get a chance to have some." Tommy nodded; in reality, they had more than half the barrel left. Izzy turned to them and saw Tommy's smile and Koichi's frown.

"Before I forget, we should thank everyone who helped make this possible," Izzy continued. "JP and Jeremy, who helped set all this up. It looks and sounds fantastic. Good work." Everybody cheered. Somewhere in the middle of the dance floor, JP and Jeremy took bows.

"Jeri, who helped ensure everything was sent down the river for this."

After the cheers came and went, Jeri shouted, "Including all of your outfits!" Another round of cheers came, this one even louder. Even Koichi let out a chuckle.

"Tommy, for manning the refreshment stand all night." Tommy smiled widely and waved at all the applause. "And of course the primary organizer Koichi."

The cheers were just as loud, but Koichi did not smile and wave. In fact, he felt overwhelmed by all the attention. Nobody understood how he had screwed up. Nobody realized how little he deserved it. Even worse, Takato was clapping the loudest.

The din of loud conversation took over as Izzy turned off the mic and sprinted to the bathroom. Koichi's moment in the sun was gone before he could appreciate it. All it did was drain him even more. Defeated, he said, "Tommy, I think I'm going to head back to my room."

"Um, all right. I guess I can manage without you," Tommy said with no confidence.

Koichi spied a slow rush of people approaching the table. "Get through this group, then say we ran out. If you need help tearing down, I'll have my D-Tector."

Tommy nodded. "Okay. Good work, Koichi." He sighed as Koichi ducked out the back and towards Ophani Tower. He tried to ignore the tears forming in Koichi's eyes. He returned to the table and met the mob.

"Okay, I wanna start with anyone who hasn't had one yet," Tommy explained. Nobody in the group hadn't had one already. They all wanted refills. Tommy did the best he could, trying to remember who was only going for their second and who was a regular patron.

"Aw, come on, let me have one more!" Kazu pleaded.

"Nope! I know you've had plenty," Tommy insisted as he filled one last round for Nene.

As Tommy either granted or denied everybody and the crowd started to thin, Kari approached. "Uh... I don't know, Kari. You've had quite a few of these."

Kari shook her head. "Bit of a sweet tooth," she said, dour.

Tommy stared back, uneasy. "I really shouldn't. We're almost out."

"Nobody else is in line." Her head was already held lower, and sunk further. "It's been a bad night. Please?"

"I'll take one," said Izzy, joining them at the table. "Is Koichi all right? I saw him run out."

"He was still pretty upset," Tommy replied, obliging Izzy. "Good try though."

Izzy noticed Kari, still standing there with her empty glass, still silently pleading with Tommy. He had seen her upset and distraught before, but this drained, pitiful face was a new one. "What's wrong? What did Davis do?"

"Davis isn't the problem," she mumbled. "I don't really want to talk about it right now." Kari shook her head at him. "It's a sit alone and eat ice cream problem. I need more ice cream."

He turned to Tommy, who stared back, shaking his head. "Oh..." Izzy mumbled.

Kari grabbed Izzy's arm. "Can you tell Tommy to let me have one more?"

"I don't know if that's such a..." Izzy made the mistake of looking into her eyes. Those beautiful eyes devastated by some unknown tragedy. He wanted to know what it was and help in any way possible. He could only do one thing, despite his better judgment. He nodded at Tommy.

Reluctant as he was, Tommy wasn't arguing with a higher authority. He made the drink and gave it to Kari. Kari thanked both of them and returned to her corner of the hall. Izzy shook his head and drank from his own glass. "Sorry," Izzy mumbled to Tommy.

Tommy glared back. "Just so we're clear, if something happens to her and you guys blame Koichi, I won't forgive you."

Izzy nodded and replied, "I understand." He finished his drink quietly as Tommy declared the last barrel dry. Izzy returned to the stage, already regretting his action. He doubted anything bad would actually happen, but he wasn't putting anybody in a good position.

Before he could get his headphones back on and lose himself in his work, Takato came up to him and said, "Hey, Izzy! Uh, great job so far."

"Thank you," Izzy replied, doing his best to show appreciation for the compliment despite his worry.

"So... uh... I was wondering if you did requests."

"Sure." Izzy smiled and shrugged. "My laptop is networked to the giant server Marcus found. I have literally everything."

"Okay, well, uh, I didn't have anything specific. I was just wondering if you could do something a little slower. You know, uh... more romantic?"

Izzy frowned. "I don't know how well that will go over. I was trying to avoid all that. There aren't that many actual couples here."

Takato grinned. "Well we won't get any more with that attitude! C'mon, let's make some magic happen."

Izzy turned away, stealing a glance at Sora across the room. Takato continued to plead, "Aw, you can't play just one for us? We're having such a great night." As Izzy continued to hesitate, Takato resorted to flattery. "Please? Don't you want to send everyone home happy? You're doing great tonight. And I love the bowtie!"

"All right, fine," Izzy huffed. "I'll throw one in toward the end."

"Awesome! You're the best!" Takato slapped Izzy on the shoulder and ran back to the floor. Izzy sighed, put his headphones on and shook it off. At least he knew it wouldn't be the worst mistake he made that night.

* * *

Jeri Katou didn't think she'd be looking forward to a proper slow dance with Takato as much as she was. The milkshake debacle worried her sick, endangered everybody and drained Koichi of all his confidence. As the night neared the end, it was the last thing on her mind. Takato had rode in to make sure the problems were taken care of. He was more than just her knight. He was everybody's, and he was there for Koichi when needed.

The music faded away and Izzy's voice blared, "All right, we're almost at the end here. I've had a couple requests for something a little slower, so here we go. Grab somebody special, because this is all you're getting."

Jeri took Takato's shoulders and said, "Thank you." Takato put his hands on her waist and swayed as the ballad began.

Despite Izzy's fears, the floor was full. Not everybody was in a relationship, but for five minutes, several who weren't were dying to fake it. Unattached boys danced with unattached girls. Friends danced with friends. A party-crashing Mervamon grabbed an unsuspecting Ryo. Takato was happy to see it.

"I love you," said Takato. Despite the simplicity of the statement, Jeri blushed. "I don't know if I say it enough. You did so much to pull all this together." Jeri knew this was her cue to stop him and give Koichi his share of the credit, but she was too enthralled with the praise to interrupt.

"I hope everyone in Command knows how awesome a job you do here. I wouldn't know where to start with all that. I'm so proud of you." He flashed that nervous smile she still remembered from the day they met way back in Shinjuku. "And I gotta say you look amazing."

She pulled him closer, arms now around his neck. For everything she wanted to say, she didn't. She didn't have to. Jeri put her head against his shoulder and let the song play out. She knew she didn't deserve the happiness she was feeling at that moment. So she closed her eyes and held tight to the man who believed she did. Finally, her eyes opened and the words popped out.

"I love you so much, Takato."

* * *

Kari Kamiya was not happy to see the party suddenly and drastically turn romantic. For someone surrounded by loved ones, a love song only made her feel more alone. She looked across the floor. Sure there were the actual couples, but everybody seemed to be out there. Nene danced with Mikey, Yoshi danced with Thomas, Angie danced with Ewan, and Mimi danced with Joe. As far as Kari knew, none of them were actually linked, but they were out there enjoying themselves anyway. Kari's "date" was on the sidelines, but even Davis jokingly had his arms around Marcus and Keenan and swayed with them. He had avoided her since their argument, but he was fine.

She was the only girl not dancing. Instead, she leaned against the wall and wondered how she let her night get ruined. Why did she try so hard to deny that TK was in love with her? Was dealing with his feelings really so difficult? She wanted to think she would have handled any hypothetical confession with poise and respect. No, she didn't feel that way about him; she scoffed at the notion of a romantic attraction to the eight year old in the funny hat. At the same time, she still cared about him dearly and was equally repulsed at the idea of hurting him.

All she wanted was to forget about romance for the rest of the night. For the rest of the year if possible. Drowning in ice cream was a good first step, and she could feel the sugar going to her head. It helped a little, but Izzy's musical swerve kept it on her mind. She gave him a glare from across the hall, but she doubted he saw it. Nobody seemed to see her at all.

Before the first chorus started, she turned away, thinking she'd feel better outside. She doubted Gatomon could help her, but at least she would have a guaranteed companion. Before she took her first step, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around and saw Izzy.

"I, uh..." He looked around nervously. "You look like you need someone to dance with."

He held out a hand. Kari realized that as much as she wanted to run away, she was also tired of being alone. She took his hand silently and he walked her to the dance floor. Kari stumbled once. They arrived, he put one hand on her waist, and he led her in time to the music. His form wasn't perfect, and her moves were delayed and a little staggered, but it felt nice anyway.

"I didn't think you knew how to dance," she said.

Izzy shrugged, hesitating to make eye contact. "I spent the last two weeks teaching myself how to match beats. I think I have this rhythm thing figured out." After a pause, he asked, "You never did tell me what happened. I don't like seeing you this down."

She shook her head. "Davis said TK was in love with me."

He faced her, looking her square in the eyes. After losing his place, and the rhythm, for a moment, he said, "I don't blame him." Izzy took a deep breath. "That's a lovely dress."

"I just don't know why it bothers me so much. I guess deep down I always suspected it but I never wanted to deal with it. Davis says I act weird around any boy who likes me. I never noticed. Like there's a side of me that I don't recognize." She chuckled. "I sure don't know the side that makes people like me in the first place."

"I could list a million reasons why people like you," Izzy blurted. "I don't understand how anyone doesn't."

Kari looked down, frowning. "Are you going to say you like me?"

"I..." He turned away, a blush appearing. He dawdled for a few bars, enough to get the color out of his face. By the time he faced her again, she was back to staring at him. He gulped and looked her in the eyes. "Do you want me to?"

She stared at his chest, barely able to continue moving about the floor. Her head was swimming, and wasn't sure if it was the sensation of a slow dance with a boy or some other factor. So she said, "I'm not thinking straight right now. I don't want to say something stupid. I don't want this to be worse."

Izzy nodded, kissing her forehead as the music drew to a close. "It'll all be fine."

"Thank you, Izzy."

Kari looked around as the music stopped. There were plenty of hugs and a few kisses going around, but there were more confused looks. A few were directed at the empty stage. Izzy shrieked and ran up to start the next song. Just like that, the moment was over and Kari had nothing left to do but retreat to her corner again.

* * *

Tai Kamiya wanted to kill Izzy. He had come around to the idea of creating a fun, upbeat party atmosphere where everybody was free to dance away their problems. The mission at what they had come to call Isthmian Castle was demoralizing to everyone who knew Matt and TK. While a celebration so soon didn't sound like a good idea, it was lifting spirits and treating everyone who had fought so hard to a deserved good time. This slow love song drew a line.

He had been having a great time with Sora. It was easy and casual and fun, a reminder of their friendship before losing Matt. With Matt around, it was easy for Tai to put his feelings aside and just be friends with her. The three of them could hang out and goof around and dance stupidly all they wanted. As certain as Tai was that he and Sora would have made a fantastic couple and as much as he was determined to avoid pursuing it in Matt's absence, this friendship is what he missed most of all.

The shift in music threatened that. This was the chance for all the couples to get out on the floor- all two of them by Tai's count. It would only serve as a reminder that it should have been three. He couldn't bear to think of how Sora would feel watching them. Or worse, what he would feel if she asked him to dance in Matt's place.

Sora caught him off guard, tugging on his arm. "Come on," she said, a smug grin on her face. "You say you hate this kind of music but you know you want to."

He did. Of course he did. He just didn't want it to be under these pretenses. But one glance at her, both looking and feeling her absolute best, made it impossible for him to resist. She led him into the throng and, before he knew it, there he was sharing a romantic dance with the love of his life.

Sora shook her head, still wearing that smile. "I can't remember the last time I enjoyed myself this much."

"I'm glad you're having fun," he obliged.

"How long has it been since we hung out like this? It feels like forever." She stared at his necktie. "I know you're really busy upstairs and you've got the weight of all this on your shoulders but... I miss you."

That wasn't the reason at all, but he didn't say anything. He did his best to look over her shoulder, at anything other than her. She was impossibly beautiful in her dress, and he struggled to put aside the thoughts that it led him to.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Are you that scared to dance with me?"

He shook his head. This was the reason: she could read him far too easily. Defeated, he looked back at her, thrown for a moment by her eyes, and said, "I'm scared of what this might lead to."

Now she looked away, eyes down. "I am too. A little. I need to move on, but actually doing it is weird. I thought it would be easier with you, but-"

"With me?" Tai blurted. "You mean...?"

Sora blushed. "Well, wouldn't it be? We know each other so well, it just seemed..." Her head shook rapidly. "If this is weird or something, it's okay. There are other guys around." She chuckled. "I always thought Thomas was pretty cute."

Thomas? It dawned on Tai that nothing he could do was going to stop Sora from moving on with her life. She was determined to test the waters again, if not with him than with someone else. Why shouldn't it be him?

His grip on her tightened, but he forced a cool smile and said, "Nah, it's fine. If you want to give this a shot, let's give this a shot."

She smiled back. "That's better." Sora stepped just a little closer to Tai as they continued to dance. "Maybe I read it totally wrong but I always got the sense you liked me anyway."

"Like you?" he blurted. Whether it was her stirring up his years of silence or being this close to making it actually happen, the words poured out. "Sora, you know me better than I know myself. It's almost scary how well you get me. And you're just cool and sweet and..." He smiled and looked up in the air, sighing. "I can't lie, that dress is making me crazy. I just..." With a moment to compose himself, he looked her in the eyes. "I just can't imagine being happier with anybody else."

Sora needed a moment to process it, and even to catch her breath. But her eyes stayed fixed on his the entire time. Eventually, and firmly, she said, "Well, Tai, you're with me. And there's one verse left." She pressed up against him. "So dance with me like you mean all that."

And he did. He wrapped his arms tighter around her, held her close, and spun her around, never once taking his eyes off her. The song only went on for another minute. To Tai it felt like time had stopped. As the final bars played, he was so consumed in the moment that he didn't hesitate to lean forward. He saw her eyes close, but he refused to miss witnessing the moment when he first kissed her.

He only realized they had stopped spinning when he pulled back. Sora opened her eyes, blinking a few times as her mouth formed into a light grin. "Thank you for the dance," she said.

"I love you," he said in a faint whisper.

She looked down, that grin sticking around. "Do you need to stick around until the end? Because I could... I could go."

Tai looked around. The romantic phase of the night was ending but the dance certainly wasn't. "What do you mean? Leave now? You just want to go back to your room?"

Sora eyed the hallway, her smile fading. Then she looked up at him and said, "Or yours." She blinked. "Either way."

He gasped, looking around frantically. This dance wasn't anything official; Koichi surely had a teardown committee assigned and Izzy was obligated to stay until the end. "I don't need to stay," he said, somehow keeping his voice from squeaking. He pulled back, took her hand, and the two of them quietly left the hall.

Along the way, Sora leaned closer, pressing against Tai's shoulder and not budging. He switched from her hand to her shoulder. Her smile suggested she was completely at peace. It made him feel the same way.

As they stepped aboard the elevator, Sora securely in Tai's arms, he looked up at the ceiling and mouthed, "I'm sorry."

* * *

JP Shibayama considered himself the smartest man in the room. While he had a lot of work to do before and after the dance, he only had a few minor tweaks during it. That meant he could let loose, and he certainly did. But he was smart about it, pacing himself to last through the night. The last fifteen minutes of Izzy's set was a hyper, explosive string of madness designed to wear out everybody once and for all and make sure they were not only eager for their beds, but would collapse in them. JP stayed on the sidelines the entire time.

Best of all, he still had a great time. He was a lousy dancer, but his enthusiasm and willingness to act like an idiot were perfect for this environment. All the girls danced with him; years of hard luck in that department took the night off. He got his dance with Zoe, of course, but more importantly he was able to smooth everything over with Nene. That was a huge weight off his shoulders, and itself made the night worthwhile.

Izzy finally ended his set, pulling out all the tricks he had learned in two weeks of practice (the biggest trick was faking that he knew what he was doing). He wasn't sure how to respond to the cheers and confirm that he was done, so he took an awkward bow and rushed off the stage.

JP was waiting for him. "That was awesome, Izz."

The night's DJ was out of breath. "I just did that. I can't believe I just did that."

"You killed it! When's the next one?"

Izzy froze in place, eyes widening as he stared at thin air. JP slapped him on the back. "I'm just kidding. Don't worry about that right now."

With a nod, Izzy was able to shake it off. The high of the performance still made him giddy. "But you... and Jeri... and Koichi... we accomplished something amazing tonight."

"Sure did!" JP exclaimed, high-fiving Izzy with both hands.

"Where's Koichi? I should talk to him."

Tommy popped up from under a table, holding a stack of plastic cups. "Uh, Koichi left already. He said he wasn't feeling well."

JP grinned. "And I know Jeri isn't sticking around." Best he could tell, she and Takato had already bolted.

"That's all right," Izzy replied. "Here, let me pack up my stuff so you guys can tear down."

As JP waited for that to happen, he leaned back against what had been the refreshment table and watched as a few late stragglers waited to make absolutely sure the music was over. Zoe was also still there, leaning against the front of the stage next to Jeremy. JP couldn't help but listen in.

"I have to admit it... I had fun." She playfully punched Jeremy in the shoulder. "As far as first dates go, that's hard to beat."

"I'm glad you had a good time. That's the kind of smiling we need to get out of you more often," said Jeremy. His own smile was almost as big.

She took a breath and looked away. That smile wasn't going away and a blush was starting to form. "So... what now?"

"What do you mean?"

Zoe turned back to him, raising her eyebrows. "I know I should be tired but..."

"Well..." As always, Jeremy stood upright, totally stiff and unwilling to compromise his noble presentation. It helped masked his excitement. "Any suggestions?"

A giggle escaped. "Well..."

JP knew he should have turned away, occupying himself with anything else and getting as far away from that conversation as he could. He knew Jeremy and Zoe had become friends. He knew they were going together. He didn't think it had escalated this far this quickly. As much as he wanted to encourage his buddy on, it was a deflating feeling. JP had spent years considering a girl like Zoe unattainable for a guy like him. Jeremy was making it look easy.

Tommy sprung up again. "Hey, JP, I'm all done back-" JP cupped his mouth and pointed to Zoe. Tommy stopped protesting and watched them with interest. Once JP released his hand, he said, "Ooh, what's going on over there?"

Zoe, meanwhile, struggled to say anything, but Jeremy wasn't giving an inch. Eventually, she was able to let it out. "I don't know... I mean... if you still wanted to hang out..."

Tommy's face lit up. He looked at JP in disbelief. "Whoa, seriously?!" JP shushed him. Quieter, Tommy added, "I don't think she had any milkshakes..."

"What's that got to do with anything?" JP asked. Tommy just shook his head.

Zoe finally got it out: "We could even go back to my room and-"

On instinct, JP shouted, "Hey, Casanova!" Both Jeremy and Zoe jumped and turned to him. "You know you're on teardown duty, right? We gotta get all these tables back inside!"

Jeremy saluted back and nodded at Zoe. "Duty calls, ma'am!"

With a snicker, Zoe nodded back. "Okay. I guess I'll see you around. Thanks for the great night." She kissed him on the cheek.

Tommy slapped JP on the arm. "Well played."

Zoe watched as Jeremy reported for duty. It may not have been the ideal end to her night, but she smiled anyway. She saw that JP was smiling too. Briefly, only briefly, they made eye contact.

Their smiles fell at the same time. Zoe lowered her head and walked out.

* * *

Rika Nonaka had never, at any point in her life, imagined ducking into the stacks of a library to steal a few more kisses with a guy. She also never thought she'd be so willing to slow dance with anybody, or that more kisses would happen there in such a public place. Heck, the kiss that started it all was a surprise. But here she was with Ken, struggling to let the night go. She tried to keep a straight face and not make any inappropriate noises, but she was enjoying this far more than she wanted to let on.

Once he strayed down to her neck, she knew she had to stop. It was a foreign sensation- fascinating and amazing, but she refused to welcome any more of it. Even so, she let him continue for a few more seconds, stifling her gasps before pushing lightly on his chest.

"Sorry..." Ken stood up straight and checked the hallway for any onlookers. He took a breath and said, "Too much?"

Rika shook her head. "Just right." She needed a breath too. "But let's call it a night."

Ken nodded and took her hands. "I'm really excited about this. Every time you let me see more of you, it only makes me like you more. And I hope you feel the same way about me."

She did, even if she didn't say anything in response. Rika just said, "That was fun. Just don't start bragging to your friends, okay?"

He kissed her one more time, said good night, and returned to Wizard Keep while she headed in the other direction towards Leo Tower. Rika kept her face expressionless the whole way in case anyone walked past her. Once she boarded an unoccupied elevator and the doors closed, she broke out into a fit of giddy laughter, twirling around in imitation of the dancing she and Ken had done earlier. Her dress had this elegant flow when she spun around that she found strangely appealing. With the right person, playing princess for one night was not a terrible experience at all.

Still, by the time the fourth floor doors opened, Rika's game face was back on, no matter how unlikely it was that anyone would see her in this final stretch to her door. The door that had, to her confusion, a necktie hung around it. The closer she got to the door, the more she heard the commotion inside. Sneering at the mystery tie, she decided it best to knock first.

"Don't come in!" shouted Jeri... and Takato. Whatever was going on inside did not stop.

Rika swore under her breath before shouting back, "I thought we agreed you'd only do all that stuff while I was on patrol!"

"Sorry! Extenuating circumstances!" Jeri replied through labored breaths.

"What extenuating circumstances?!" Rika clutched the tie in anger.

A pause, then an answer: "Takato's really hot in a tie!"

Rika dropped the tie quickly and backed away in both disgust and futility. The mental images were bad enough, and staying anywhere near the door was only bound to lead to more. She wasn't going to wait around for them to finish either, which meant she suddenly found herself without a place to sleep.

This didn't worry her. It was an annoying inconvenience, especially with how much she wanted to get out of the dress she was in, but it wasn't a reason to panic. In fact, the easiest solution was on the other side of the hallway. She knocked on the other door and called out "Yoshi!"

She didn't get an answer. Rika knocked harder and shouted louder, but Yoshi was either not in her room or incapacitated. Now Rika started to panic.

(Later, she would find out that Zoe wasn't the only one who didn't want the night to end, leading to Mimi starting an impromptu pizza party in the kitchen and dragging Yoshi along.)

Rika tried to think of who else would have available crash space that she would actually be comfortable asking. She shuddered as the best option popped into her head, making her rack her brain for an alternative. The only ones that came were even worse. She groaned and summoned the elevator to go down one floor.

If Takato was with Jeri, then his bed would be open. It was sound enough logic for Rika, no matter the implications. She still hesitated before knocking, only doing so when she reminded herself that the third best option was going to be Ryo.

"What's up?" Marcus asked from the other side.

"Open the door!" Rika shouted. She didn't hear anything from inside, so she added, "It's Rika."

The door opened. Marcus wore only boxers, forcing Rika to look away. "Of course it is. Nobody else has a voice that annoying."

The sight of him in his underwear made her regret this already, but it was too late to turn back. "I need to sleep here tonight. Jeri has... company." She shuddered again.

Marcus looked up at the ceiling. "Yeah, I can hear them. Takato's going strong tonight. But why are you asking me? Yoshi's upstairs."

She butted past him. "She's not in her room. I'm not happy about this either but I have to sleep somewhere."

Hands in the air, Marcus closed the door behind her and hopped back into bed. "Suit yourself."

"Hey!" Rika pointed at her dress. "I have to change, stupid."

"Change into what?"

Rika sneered, but this was a fair question. It was a question she needed to find an answer for. She rummaged through Takato's dresser and found a shirt and comfortable enough shorts for her to wear. They were a little big for her and the colors and design screamed Takato, but she wasn't picky. She'd only have to run back to her room in the morning, so the only one that should ever see her would be...

"C'mon, blue isn't your color," said Marcus.

"You still need to leave!"

"Leave? It's my room and I'm tired," he muttered. "You think Yoshi only danced with Thomas? Keenan and I had to put our shifts in too." He turned over, facing the wall. "Like there's anything to see anyway."

She groaned in disgust, but he wasn't moving. Which meant he also wasn't looking. She turned around and undressed slowly, nervously, taking glances back every few seconds to make sure he wasn't stealing a peek.

Halfway through, he said, "Jeez, that sounds complicated. Why'd you wear a dress like that anyway?"

"Do you mind?" she replied angrily. He stayed silent. She shot him one last look and finished changing into her makeshift pajamas. "There, I'm done. Good night."

As she pulled back the covers on Takato's bed, Marcus said, "I'm surprised you're willing to sleep in his bed."

She turned around. "And why's that?"

"You can guess what those two get up to in there."

It caused an eye tic, but Rika replied, "Jeri and I have an understanding. They cut it out until we're back on patrol."

Marcus rolled over to face her. "No, they just bring it down here. Just last night in fact. And no, they haven't changed the sheets."

Rika jumped back, releasing the covers. She spun around. "Ew! And you just put up with it?"

"We got a system. Gotta sleep in the habitat sometimes but I make it work." Marcus grinned. "A real man doesn't get in the way of his friend's-"

"Stop!" Rika shouted. She clenched her teeth, closed her eyes, and exhaled loudly. "Dammit, move over."

"What, seriously?" Marcus rolled his eyes, but obeyed. "I don't believe you."

She pulled back the covers and crawled into his bed. She switched off the light, hoping that would somehow mask what was happening.

"I swear if you try anything..."

"Like I would," Marcus fired back. "You can't be anything more than a B-cup."

"Shut the hell up."

They remained quiet for several minutes, Rika occasionally fidgeting and Marcus trying not to be annoyed about the intrusion. It crossed her mind that with him so close she was never going to feel comfortable enough to actually sleep. But that thought vanished in time. His bed turned out to be just as soft, just as safe, and perhaps even warmer than her own.

Before falling asleep, she said, "Thanks for letting me crash here."

"Sure, no problem," he replied.

* * *

Izzy Izumi saw her as he finished packing his laptop and cringed. Everybody who wasn't stuck helping clean and restore the tables had left, with one exception. From a distance, he couldn't even be sure Kari was awake, huddled over on a far table. With only JP and Jeremy still around, Izzy knew this was his problem. Even worse, he may have helped cause it in the first place.

He swung on his laptop case and approached her. He could see that she was breathing, but she didn't respond to him. Izzy shook her shoulder, snapping her out of her sleep. Kari picked up her head slowly and looked around. When she found Izzy, he saw the blur in her eyes that somehow seemed lifeless despite a face full of color. This was what Tommy was worried about.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"It's 12:30. Do you think you can walk?"

She was able to stand up and made it a few steps before stumbling into his arms. This wasn't going to work. He tried to lift her onto his back, but that effort was doomed from the start. He wasn't built for it and his laptop case was a major hindrance.

"It's okay. I'll just sleep here," Kari mumbled. Izzy wasn't having that.

Thankfully, JP had no troubling carrying Kari to her room. Izzy walked alongside them, carrying her handbag and her shoes. He struggled to take his eyes off hers. They were closed, as much due to embarrassment as fatigue.

"Thanks, JP," Izzy said. They reached their destination, where Izzy dug through her handbag to find her room key. Even that felt like an an intrusion.

Izzy opened the door as JP set Kari down. She stumbled again. He caught her again.

"You can take it from here?" JP asked. Izzy nodded. "Hey, once Jeremy gets the tables back, is it all right if we finish the rest in the morning? We still have to get up early."

"Not at all. And seriously, thanks for helping. I'll, uh..." Izzy looked at Kari, then down the hallway as if he was doing something illicit. "I'll see what I can do to get your suspension cut down a bit."

JP smiled. "Oh, that would be awesome, thanks. Well, I'll let you deal with her. Good night."

With JP gone, it was back to clumsily staggered steps as Izzy struggled to help Kari inside. Pulling her arm around his shoulder and wrapping his arm around her waist, he managed to get her to her bed. Or at least half of her. Her head was on her pillow, but at a bad angle leaving her legs hanging off the side. Izzy sat next to them, exhausted from everything and not sure how far he wanted to go to get her completely tucked in. He caught himself admiring those legs longer than he should have.

"I feel awful..." Kari muttered. "I can't remember a night this bad."

Izzy reached out to pat something reassuringly, but in her position nothing in his grasp seemed appropriate. He gave up and bent over, staring at the floor with his hands clasped. "I let you down tonight. I can't tell you why, and I'm sure you won't remember this anyway, but I wasn't looking out for you. I'm sorry."

"But you're the only one who's here." He looked at her. She used her arms to push herself up to look at him, or at least she tried to. "No Tai... no Davis... just you."

He helped her sit up, supporting her back with his hand. "You don't understand. I want to be there for you the way Tai always is, but-"

"But you are. You're here."

He wasn't listening; his head was still down. "He makes caring about you seem so easy." Izzy sat up and looked at her. "I just wish-" He barely got a gasp out before she kissed him. One short, strong, impossibly perfect hit on his mouth.

Izzy wanted to ask why he deserved that. He was certain it wasn't supposed to work this way. He was lost and confused and looking at Kari gave him no answers. Only that she was as lost as confused as he was. There was only one direction either of them could see: he pulled her closer and kissed her again. And again. And his hand cradled her face as they saw no reason to stop.

Her balance gave way soon enough and she fell backwards. He floated down with her, one hand still caressing her back while the other drifting and eventually finding her thigh. Both rubbed her soft skin as their kissing continued. They were still lost, but now safe in a moment they wouldn't release. The moment grew more and more intense.

It was faster too as the kisses turned into short bursts of instant passion. Kari turned her head just slightly and Izzy saw and attacked her neck. Both his hands sensed her muscles clenching. He liked that sensation. He wanted it to continue. At least he did until his mouth caught her halterneck. The sudden taste of fabric startled him. He wanted it gone.

That's when he stopped and picked his head up. One of his hands played with the ends of her dress straps, contemplating giving them a tug to undo the knot. The other still held her thigh, occasionally catching part of her dress. Izzy knew where he wanted to take that hand too. He looked at her face. Her lips were still pursing, still waiting for another kiss from him. Her eyes barely opened, and when they did they never were able to find him. Had they not been making out a moment ago, he wouldn't have been convinced she was awake.

He leaped off the bed, startled by the sudden realization of what was happening, what he was doing, and whom he was doing it to. Izzy backed away, hands shaking. Kari barely moved. He ran out the door, slamming it behind him and freezing in place. His hands never stopped shaking.

Izzy turned his back to the wall, his breathing no longer controllable. He slid to the ground, burying his head in his arms. Bad enough that he had almost done the unthinkable, but throughout it all he desperately wanted to. The urge hadn't just been with him after the first kiss or even after entering her room. It had been with him since the moment she agreed to a dance. He came terribly close to losing to it. That night, he fully understood just how deeply he cared for Kari, which made it all the more agonizing to realize how much he had failed her.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 12: "Take It All Away"**  
In this episode, Izzy worries his actions will ruin his ability to work with Kari. A close call may change Mikey's relationship with both Nene and Angie. Takato learns about Marcus and Rika's night together. Zoe tries to get JP to accept her dating Jeremy.

" _Let's be honest- I never needed you. And I don't want you anymore. Just go."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes**  
While Nene has been pretty quiet about her former idol career (as briefly illustrated in Hunters), it's certainly a part of her and it will become a bigger factor later in the story. I can't promise an explanation for why it happened, but you'll at least understand where it fits into her character.

Christopher's line about auto-tune ruining everything is a reference to the Digimon Fusion theme song.

The passage about Suzie and Tommy's relationship is inspired somewhat by official artwork crossing over the first four seasons. One story describes and illustrates Shiuchon and Tomoki getting into an argument, requiring Jenrya and Sora's intervention. Suzie's storyline makes it difficult to get good scenes with Tommy, but that sort of hostility is part of their friendship.

JkF1Pz2IlEk  
B00EL3N7AW


	13. 12- Take It All Away

**Neverworld**

 _You keep pushing me away._  
 _In spite of what you say, I found out yesterday that I've been wasting all my time._  
 _Trying to make you smile. Trying to make this seem worthwhile._  
 _You've been pushing me around._  
 _In spite of what I do- trying to make things good for you._  
 _\- Cake, "Take It All Away"_

 **Episode 12**

Nene Amano knew, from the moment she woke up, that she had done something regrettable. The last thing she remembered was requesting one of her hit songs and leading a bunch of girls in dance. She didn't want anyone knowing she was a former idol, yet she had practically announced it over the speakers. Now she was stuck without any recollection of what had happened after that. Her head pounded, her feet ached and, most distressingly, she was stripped down to her underwear and sleeping on top of a half-dressed Mikey Kudo.

The head and muscle pain prevented her from getting out anything more than a loud gasp. She had assured herself that she would never stoop to getting involved with any of her old Fusion Fighter comrades. No matter what her mental state, she never could have imagined surrendering to Mikey. Even worse, she was still conditioned to the laws of the idol singer, where any whiff of public romance, illicit or not, was career suicide. It had hastened her escape when she grew tired of the lifestyle.

She knew panicking would only make her headache worse, but this was such a bad mistake she couldn't believe it was real. Nene shook Mikey, hoping that somehow he could tell her that it was a false alarm, or perhaps even a dream. He stirred, opening his eyes slowly and squinting at the daylight creeping in from her window. When he got his bearings together, he saw her crouched on top of him. He looked her over from head to toe, admiring what he saw, then grinned back and said, "Well, good morning."

Nene slapped him. "Good morning?!" she spat. "What did we do last night?!"

He rubbed his cheek as it dawned on him that he didn't remember. "I'm not sure, but I have a good idea."

She turned her nose. "You don't know either?! This is serious. What happened to us?"

Mikey sat up. Nene rolled off him, taking a sheet with her. He felt his head. "My guess is someone spiked the drinks."

"How...?" Her breathing became more labored. "This is terrible."

He tried to rub her shoulder, but she jerked away from him. "Hey, don't sweat it. Nothing can happen here, remember? It's not a big deal."

Nene popped up, still holding the sheet. "How can you say that?! Of course it's a big deal! We didn't plan on getting drunk! Or going to bed together! Or..." Her head shook. A few tears flew out. "Are you happy about this?" She punched his arm.

He yelped. "No! I mean..." Mikey paused to actually look at her. Not only was her lip quivering, but her trembling hand clutched the sheet tightly. Playing this down wasn't going to help. "We don't know what happened. Let's pretend it didn't."

She shook her head at him, but it calmed her down. She fell back against the pillow. "It's going to bother me. What if we did? We'll never look at each other the same way again."

Mikey sighed. This was deeply troubling her and with no reassurances to offer he needed to find some reason to look away. He found his goggles on her nightstand and picked them up. Any distraction helped.

Nene scoffed. "Why did you wear those anyway?"

"I thought we were all supposed to. Like it's a formal thing." Mikey squinted as he examined the lenses.

"Maybe there's a test Joe can do that would tell us."

"No need," Mikey said, smiling. He tapped the lens and faced her. "We got our answer."

He handed her the goggles. On the lenses, in some sort of pink paint, were the words "WE DIDN'T." It was barely legible, but certainly distinct, certainly intentional, and certainly Mikey's handwriting.

"How did you...?" Nene asked, looking at them closely. Mikey investigated further and picked up a small bottle off the floor. It was empty, but next to it was its cap, and the small brush attached to it. He showed them to Nene. "My nail polish?"

"Yep." He looked at the floor next to her nightstand. The rest of the bottle had spilled and dried all over the wood. "That'll be a bitch to clean up."

Nene shook her head in disbelief. "So what you're saying is... even though we were both blackout drunk... and about to pass out... you used my nail polish... to write on your goggles... because you knew we'd be freaking out in the morning... even though you were messed up enough to come up in here in the first place."

Mikey set the bottle and cap aside and grinned at her. "That seems to be the case."

She sighed. "You never cease to amaze me, Mikey Kudo." Nene leaned in and kissed his nose.

Once she pulled back, he noticed that she had released the sheet, giving him another look at her. He smiled.

Nene returned his goggles and said, "Now get the hell out of my room."

* * *

Rika Nonaka woke up feeling the heat of Marcus's breath on her neck. He wasn't actually touching her and as far as she could tell they had survived the night without incident. He hadn't even encroached on her side of the bed; both had gravitated towards the center during the night, leaving them inches away from what would be considered spooning. She was disgusted nonetheless.

"This never happened, understand?" she muttered. Marcus, still mostly asleep, mumbled something unintelligible, but it sounded like an agreement.

Their pact was useful until the door opened less than a minute later. Takato entered the room, saw the two of them, and screamed. He covered his eyes and shouted, "What the hell?! I can't unsee that!"

"Oh stop it!" Rika shouted back. "This is your fault!"

"My fault?!" Takato lowered his hands cautiously, ready to raise them again in case either of the two weren't clothed. "Rika, what are you doing? What about Ken?"

"We didn't do anything!"

By now, Marcus was awake. "Yeah, you think I'd go for her? In her dreams."

Other than a quick sneer, Rika ignored his comment. "I'm only here because you two locked me out. And Marcus told me what you do in your bed."

Takato chuckled nervously. "Uh... sorry about that. We were gonna find you when we were done. That took longer than expected..."

Marcus nodded. "I could hear you. I was impressed."

The tamer smiled at the compliment, then said, "But why didn't you just go upstairs and crash with Suzie? I'm sure Henry was with Yolei."

Rika narrowed her eyes. "Bad enough that I have to think about you and Jeri going at it. Excuse me if I don't start thinking about Henry too."

"It just looks suspicious, you know? People might start talking about this. You know nobody can keep secrets here, especially with this sort of thing." Takato sighed. "You swear you two didn't do anything?"

"Trust me, if we did, you'd have heard her," said Marcus.

"Oh, don't act like you know that!" Rika replied angrily. "I don't even know; I've never..." She caught herself, suddenly blushing. With a grumble, she got out of the bed.

"Uh..." Takato pointed at Rika's clothes. Or rather, his clothes on her.

Rika looked down at them, then back at him. "Well, I couldn't sleep in that dress. I had to find something."

"Oh... well you know Jeri keeps a bunch of her clothes in the bottom drawer for when she-"

She interrupted him. "Some good that does to find out now." More sincere, she added, "Hope you don't mind me borrowing these."

"Actually, you wearing my clothes is weirdly hot." He tilted his head. "I'm very confused right now."

"I'm going to forget you said that," Rika deadpanned.

"Thank you," he squeaked.

She gathered her dress and walked out. Takato watched her, heaving a sigh once she was gone.

"So..." Marcus was smiling. "Good night, huh?"

* * *

Thomas Norstein allowed himself the luxury of waking up on time instead of early. It had been a long night, and he knew there was a full docket ahead of him. Perhaps it was foolish to plan so much work the day after so much fun, but it was too late to second guess his scheduling choices. He was already prepared to make sure Izzy was awake, but Thomas discovered he already was- slumped over at his desk, covered in his bed blanket, playing a casual Flash game with the sound turned off.

"Couldn't sleep after all that excitement?" Thomas asked.

Izzy snapped out of his trance. He hadn't realized it was morning already. Thomas was half-right: Izzy couldn't sleep, but it was for a different reason. He couldn't stop thinking about himself and Kari. Worse, he knew that he could never tell the friends these problems were usually reserved for. Izzy could only imagine Tai's reaction if he found out his best friend had these kinds of feelings about his sister.

But Izzy couldn't keep them to himself. It would have killed him. And there was no way Tentomon could understand these kinds of emotions. Izzy barely understood them himself. It left him with one possibility: "Thomas?" He kept his voice low and measured. "I'm having something of a crisis that I would appreciate your input on. Mind you, it's a little more personal than you might be used to, but I'm not comfortable turning to anyone else."

Thomas frowned, but replied, "All right. Go ahead." He sat up in his bed and listened carefully.

Izzy did his best to sit upright, turned to Thomas, and calmly said, "I almost had sex with Kari last night."

Thomas opened his mouth, but it hung instead of generated a response. Izzy added, "Who else can I talk to about this? Tai would kill me. So would Davis, most likely."

"Well, the operative word here is 'almost,'" Thomas observed. "You didn't actually do it." He shrugged. "And yes, Tai would probably not react well to it, but this is ultimately between you and her." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "And while physically, she may be a little young for that sort of behavior, hypothetically the amount of time she has spent here should make her emotionally capable of-"

Izzy stopped him, cringing. "That's the problem. I wouldn't say her mental state last night was... cognizant enough to make informed decisions about that sort of thing."

Thomas's eyes widened. A pained look crossed Izzy's face. "Yeah."

The tactical officer stared back. "Remember when I started rooming with you and everyone said it would be weird?" Izzy nodded. "It just became weird."

As Thomas stood and began dressing, Izzy asked, "So what do you think I should do? This is terrible. She was not thinking straight and I almost took advantage of her." He threw his hands up. "I did take advantage of her! Thank goodness I stopped myself."

Thomas tossed Izzy his uniform. "First thing you do is get dressed. We have a meeting today."

Izzy obeyed, still continuing the conversation. "I know I need to talk to Kari, but what am I supposed to say? That it turns out I'm actually terrible and we should never speak again?"

Buttoning his shirt, Thomas said, "While I can't advise you on your particular situation, I would suggest that the best approach is to consider outcomes on both extremes. The worst case scenario is apparent."

Izzy nodded, staring at his suit. "I'm forced into exile and have to live as some hermit somewhere nobody can find me?"

"That could never possibly happen." Thomas shrugged. "More likely Tai would literally kill you."

"I can't consider that a worse scenario. A human death in this world would be a huge boon to our research."

Thomas narrowed an eye, but dismissed it. "Well, what's the best case scenario?"

Izzy shook his head. "I can't see one. This is unwinnable."

They finished their morning routine without discussing the matter further. It was too far beyond Thomas's level of expertise to offer any suggestions without thinking it through very carefully. It wasn't until they left the room and summoned the elevator that he asked, "Well, are you legitimately attracted to her?"

"Of course!" Izzy answered. "I wouldn't have let it get that far if I wasn't."

"I need to make sure. It introduces complications to our work dynamic upstairs, but it leads me to believe you aren't as bad as you think you are. You just let your emotions get the better of you." Thomas shrugged. "Which I understand happens to most people."

Izzy sighed. "But it's inappropriate for me to like Kari the way I do. As a friend and a teammate, or even a surrogate brother, sure. But lately I've come to realize that I like her on an emotional level. In a romantic way. And yes, apparently sexually as well." He shook his head at the thought.

"Good grief, up here too?" Both Thomas and Izzy jumped at the new voice in the conversation. They were relieved to find it was Angie standing in the elevator rather than whom either of them thought it was. Not that she was happy to see them.

They boarded the elevator. Izzy bowed in remorse. "I'm really sorry. We didn't hear the doors open."

"Thank you for meeting with us this early. We'd like to get started as soon as possible," said Thomas.

They reached the top floor and found Davis at his station and Zoe wearing headphones at Kari's. Tai was sitting on his desk, his smile as bright as the morning sun coming in from the window. "Morning everybody!"

Thomas frowned. "You're in a good mood."

Davis turned to them, a look of disgust on his face. "Thank God you're here. He's unbearable."

Tai approached them, putting his arm around Thomas and Angie's shoulders. "So, we ready to kick off the new project?"

Thomas shook it off and gathered a stack of folders from his desk. Angie glared at Tai and said, "Someone got lucky last night, didn't they?"

Pulling Angie in closer, Tai said, "C'mon, friends since forever and it finally happens after years of daydreaming? Give me a break."

Angie narrowed her eyes and muttered, "Rub it in, why don't you?" She looked over at Zoe. "Does your sister need to be here for this?"

Instantly, the smile dropped from Tai's face as he realized for the first time that Kari wasn't present. She was never late.

Izzy cleared his throat. "Kari... had a rough night. She might not be in today."

Tai frowned and marched over to Davis, tugging the back of his shirt collar. "You were her 'date.' What did you do to her?"

Davis gasped for air as Tai held him up by the neck. "I, er, uh... spoilers!"

"'Spoilers' is not an answer!"

"Yeah it is! I accidentally told her some bad news about the future. She didn't take it well."

"What bad news?" Tai dropped Davis's shirt. "You lived?"

As he headed into the meeting room, Izzy raised a hand. "I'll go check on her."

Tai thanked him and joined Thomas and Angie inside. Once the door closed, Davis signaled to Zoe, who pulled the headphones off and cried, "Thank goodness. Do you know how loud I have to get this to drown him out?!"

Inside, Tai sat next to Angie as Thomas set up an easel display on the other side. "So why do you need me? Whatever it is, can't Mikey do it?"

"We'd still like the investigation team to continue looking for clues to Matt and TK's whereabouts," Thomas answered. "This is a different project."

Thomas revealed a map. Angie couldn't make out the exact geography, but she did see the long bold line connecting two points. "To make sure we are able to support the second castle fully, we will be networking the two castles with wired communication and a rail line," Thomas explained.

"This still doesn't sound like my thing," Angie said.

Flipping to a second map underneath the first, Thomas continued, "No, there are Digimon that will do most of the work for us. But we need to tunnel through the mountain in order to have space for a secure terminal. We'll need Dorulumon for that."

Angie's eyes widened. "Hold on, you want me and Dorulumon to drill through a whole mountain?!"

Thomas nodded. "You, Cody, and Yolei. Dorulumon and Digmon should be able to break through in reasonable time, and Yolei will supervise."

"Are you okay working with Yolei?" Tai asked. "I know it's different from what you usually do here, but I'm sure you can handle it."

Angie looked at the map of the tunnel. It was a tall mountain but not terribly wide. They had already worked out the shortest points. All she had to do was make sure Dorulumon didn't kill himself. It was indeed very different, but she had to admit it felt good to have Command calling on her.

"Sure, I can do this," she said, smiling. "I'd be happy to."

Tai smiled back. "Great! Get Dorulumon and head out back this afternoon. Thanks so much."

They shook hands. As Tai and Thomas left the room, Angie sat back in her chair and smiled. All she had to worry about was getting Dorulumon from Mikey.

* * *

Izzy Izumi knocked on Kari's door, still unsure of what he actually needed to say. He still couldn't envision a best case scenario; even "everything goes back to normal" seemed out of reach. But while he wanted to avoid Tai's wrath if at all possible, he knew he had to apologize to Kari. The apology was bad enough; he was afraid he'd also have to describe what he was apologizing for.

She took a while to open the door. Now she was wearing pajamas. Her eyes were still red and still refused to open completely. "I think I'm lactose intolerant," she mumbled. "I'm sorry I'm late. I'll be upstairs in a few minutes."

"It's okay. Let Zoe cover for you," he said, happy the first exchange was easy and so perfectly Kari.

Kari sighed. "We need to talk, don't we?" Izzy nodded sadly and she swung the door open for him. He frowned as he noticed she didn't have a chair in her room. He really didn't want to sit on the bed, but had no other options. Even worse, she sat next to him.

"I wish I knew what happened to me last night."

Izzy was about to explain, but remembered Tommy's warning. He didn't know how serious it was, but Izzy had enough problems without riling up anyone from Takuya's group. With any luck, Kari wouldn't ask about the how and he could focus on the what... hopefully withholding the why.

"How much do you recall?"

Her eyes sharpened and she faced him, suddenly confused. "What do you mean? Why wouldn't I remember all that?"

Izzy did a double take. He leaned away from her, eyes widening. "You remember all that?"

She lowered her head. "I wish I didn't." She patted his leg. "I still can't thank you enough for helping me get back to my room." Kari took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I just don't want to believe what happened after that."

He didn't either. In fact, he wasn't sure if her remembering it made it easier or harder to explain. He took a moment to word his apology carefully, but as it was about to come out, she blurted, "I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I just felt-"

Izzy took her hand with both of his and held it tightly. "No, I let it go too far. You said you weren't thinking straight, but I was. I should have stopped it and I didn't." He closed his eyes, bracing himself as he added, "I almost-"

"Yes, we went too far," Kari said, interrupting him. She put a hand on the side of his face and said, "And no I wasn't thinking straight, but it wasn't a thought, Izzy. It was a feeling. A feeling I wouldn't have done anything about if I was thinking. Now that I am... I can't think about anything else."

"What are you saying?" He really didn't know. He couldn't fathom it was what he was inferring, and he didn't dare suggest it.

Kari bit her lip. "My answer is yes. I want you to say you like me."

It came out softly, but instantly and without a second thought: "I like you." Before he realized it, he was the one leaning forward for the kiss. Kari received it, eyes closed and throwing her hands around his neck. It was longer than any from the previous night- far more powerful and far more sincere.

Izzy pulled away, opening his eyes and refusing a second. "What are we doing?"

She opened her eyes and shook her head slowly. "Trying. I want to try this. I want to keep this feeling for as long as we can."

"We shouldn't. What about-"

"We don't have to tell Tai. Not yet at least. Outside this room, nothing's changed." Kari moved in and rubbed their noses to together. "You're there for me as much as Tai is. I can tell you care about me a lot. And I care about you. So let's try being together."

He kissed her again and said, "Absolutely." He nodded and pulled away. "Why don't I come back when I'm off duty and we'll..." He gulped. "...have a date?"

She nodded, appreciating the weight of the word. "A date. I'll see you tonight."

One more kiss and Izzy stood and walked himself out. He looked at her one more time; her eyes were fixed on him as he left the room, a serene smile on her face the whole time. He closed the door behind him. Yes, he regretted being unable to admit just what "too far" almost meant, but the rush of joy drowned it out. Somehow, he had discovered the best case scenario.

* * *

Ewan Amano didn't think he would know what to say to Mikey the next time he saw him. Once he did, it became obvious. As Mikey stepped out of the elevator, Ewan stood in front of the door to their room and folded his arms. He waited for his best friend to walk up to him, then in a stern voice asked, "Did you have sex with my sister?"

Mikey held up his goggles; they didn't. "Both of us passed out before we had the chance," he said.

"Okay then." Ewan walked past him, arms still folded.

Before he reached the elevator, Mikey asked him, "Would it have been that big a deal if we had?"

Ewan turned around and answered, "Yes! Of course it would!" He boarded the elevator and left.

Mikey sighed and entered his room, throwing both his suit and tie on the floor. He had planned to change right away and head down to breakfast, but his head wasn't having it. The hangover wasn't the problem; those had been a regular part of his college experience. But no matter how relieved Nene and Ewan were that nothing happened, deep down Mikey wanted the night to end differently.

"Ophani Tower, fourth floor, room on the left." A month later, Mikey still remembered how close he came to chasing it, how Yolei had basically admitted it would have worked out, and how he never had another chance. He never prioritized relationships, but he also never objected to the occasional hookup. And while he would always just be friends with Nene, how could he pass up an opportunity with a former idol singer? He wanted to remember it and he wanted both of them to enjoy it, yes, but he hoped that wasn't his only shot. And seeing her undressed... it was all he saw whenever he closed his eyes.

He looked back at the door. He had to assume Ewan wasn't going to return soon and had the freedom to deal with his issue personally. As Mikey took a breath and reached for the box of tissues on Ewan's nightstand, a knock on the door rattled him. He cringed and called out, "Who is it?"

The girl on the other side shouted back, "Let me in!"

Mikey sighed, composed himself, and opened the door for Angie. "Oh... it's you."

"Of course it's me." She held a stack of clothes. Who did you think I was?"

"Never mind." He held the door open and let her in. "What's up?"

"I need Dorulumon. I'm on a tunnel drilling project." She dumped the clothes in a hamper.

"Why did you have Ewan's clothes?"

She spun around and glared at him. "Because my roommate brought home some idiot boy last night." Angie sat down on his bed. "Ewan let me stay here. We spent the whole time bitching about you two." She sneered. "It was a magical night."

"Sorry... we got carried away. Nothing actually happened though so..." Mikey shrugged. "Does that make you feel better?"

Her eyes didn't budge. "No, not really." He sat down next to her as she looked down. "Look, I understand. We went to different schools. Our lives were going in different directions. We're not as close as we used to be." Angie faced him, still with that bitter face. "But we're stuck here now. Together. And nothing's changed."

As he put a hand on her shoulder, she continued, "We used to be so close. And now what? We get one night to actually have fun as friends, and you spend the whole time looking at Nene." She shook her head angrily. "You're gonna take that the wrong way, aren't you?"

Mikey raised his eyebrows, a cool smile forming. "How do you want me to take it?"

She tried to hide the blush that formed. "Oh, you know... I want us to be friends again. And make time to hang out together and do stuff. I just wish we could be closer."

He leaned in, a hand pulling her face towards him. "I think we can do something about that."

Angie didn't get a response in before he kissed her. He clutched her cheek and shoulder to make sure that he meant it, but she pulled herself away after a few seconds. Her face was now totally red. "W... what was that about?!"

His smile didn't relent, nor did his hands. "You said you wanted to hang out and be closer. I can't think of a better way to do that."

"Y-you mean it?" Angie faced him again, her hands now finding his neck. "Mikey, I-"

Mikey looked her straight in the eyes as he said, "Angie, it doesn't matter how old we get or where our lives take us. You'll always be my number one girl."

This time, she met him halfway for the kiss, deeper and longer than the one before it. She closed her eyes as it continued, pausing only to breathe and sometimes even forgetting to do that. Her eyes only opened when he was pushing himself on top of her and kissing her neck.

"Mikey!" she gasped. He stopped and pulled himself up to face her, that impossible smile still there despite everything they were doing. He wasn't nervous or clumsy or afraid of gambling their friendship for a spontaneous moment of passion. As she looked up at him, she saw no reason to resist. As always, Mikey was leading and Angie was following. At that moment, she knew she was destined to follow him everywhere.

* * *

Zoe Orimoto knew she didn't have a long lunch break. With Kari out for the day, she could barely afford to run to the kitchen, grab something, and run back upstairs. And yet, she knew she needed to take care of something. As she saw JP and Jeremy in the hall packing the last of the speakers, she knew this was the time.

Both of the guys dropped what they were doing and stood at attention as she approached. "Hey! Did you want to grab lunch?" Jeremy asked.

Zoe smiled back, but answered. "I'd love to but I can't. Kari's out sick today."

"I'm not surprised," JP said. "She didn't look too good last night." He winked at her. "Don't be too hard on her when she gets back."

She waved him off. "Oh, Kari and I are friends now. It's okay. But I need to talk to you."

"Me?" He pointed at himself. "Something from upstairs we need to work on?"

"No." Zoe frowned. "We just need to talk in private."

They excused themselves and found two chairs in the library far away from any eavesdroppers. JP was worried from the moment they sat down. "What's wrong, Z?"

"Well, it's about last night..." Zoe took a deep breath, sat up straight, and said, "First off, you need to understand that I don't need your permission to go out with Jeremy. I'm really starting to like him and I'm going to do what I want." Suddenly, all that confidence left her and she looked away, fidgeting. "But I still want to know if you're okay with it."

"Aw, jeez..." JP scratched his cheek, eyes shifting. "I mean, I don't know. I'd have to be the biggest jerk in the world if I tried to come between two of my best friends."

She nodded. "Yes... but you don't like the idea, do you?"

"What does it matter? Like you said, you're going to do what you want and you know I'm not going to stop you."

Zoe leaned forward and put a hand on his knee. "Because it's important to me." She bit her lip. "The last couple weeks have been rough. I have this bad feeling that Takuya and I aren't friends anymore. All we've done is argue and now he's off at that other castle with Koji. He's gone. And I don't think he's coming back. I... don't even know if I want him back."

"But what does that have to do with me?"

"I can't lose all of you." Her hand clamped down. "I'm happy I'm getting closer to Jeremy and Kari, but you guys are all really special to me. I don't want Jeremy to come between us."

"Aw... Zoe..." JP shook his head. "I want to say it's not a big deal but it feels different this time. I mean I never really had a problem when you were with Takuya. I just sort of figured that was your type."

Zoe nodded repeatedly. "Oh, that's definitely my type." She looked aside. "I mean, I've hooked up with Davis a couple times. Totally my type."

JP looked down. "Yeah... I guess that's the thing. It's easy to think I never had a chance when you're with guys like that. But Jeremy's..." He sighed. "More like me."

Her head fell. "I wish I had an answer for you. But I don't. That's just how it is. He's definitely not who I usually go out with, but I think he's what I need right now."

He needed a moment to let it sink in. JP knew he couldn't be immature about it, so he thought for a while, trying to see if he could find some way to prevent this all from going to hell. He had to get to the root of the problem or risk losing both of them.

His deliberation took too long as Zoe stood up. "I'm sorry. I wish I could make you feel better about this, but-"

Suddenly, he grabbed her hand. "Wait... can I ask one thing?" Zoe sighed, still not facing him. Yet she nodded. "Hey, I know there's no reason to here, but can you take it slow?"

Zoe frowned. "What, you don't want me to sleep with him?"

"No! I mean... can you at least make sure it's for real?" JP released her, standing up himself. "I want to know that you two are serious before you go too far. If I see that, I think I can accept it." He folded his arms. "Plus I can't have you two breaking each other's hearts on my watch."

Zoe stared at him for a moment, then smiled. "You know, I can do that."

JP smiled back. "Then go for it." They hugged before returning to the hall to pass on the news.

Jeremy was waiting, impatient as all of his work required two people. "So what was that about?"

"Oh... nothing," said Zoe. She walked up to Jeremy and kissed him.

* * *

Angie Hinomoto's heart was still racing as she laid in bed with Mikey. It shocked her how quickly it happened. One moment, they were just friends, and not even as close as they had been. She had actually been annoyed with him. He had always been overlooking her in favor of other companions or newer, prettier girls. Whether there were actual romantic feelings between the two had always been a blurry line that neither saw need to clarify. Suddenly, the line was gone and they were leaping full speed into a relationship. Now Angie found Tai's behavior that morning totally reasonable.

Even moreso because despite what everyone thought, Angie had never been desperately in love with Mikey. Determined to support him and obsessed with his well-being, yes, but she knew him better than anybody. She saw his his inability to care for himself, his arrogant side and, most perplexing of all, his lack of personal ambition. They were part of the package, yes, but enough to make her wonder if she was better off keeping things professional. Those doubts were all gone now. With Mikey suddenly unable to resist her charms, she was all too eager to see where this ride would take them.

She pressed her head against his chest, a few waves of euphoria still rippling through her. She had to stifle a giggle. "Wow... that was... incredible. I don't know what to say."

He kissed her forehead, then smiled back at her and said, "You're right. We need to hang out more." She couldn't keep the giggle in this time.

Then he gently rolled her off him and sat up. "So... Dorulumon you said?"

Angie groaned. "Really, Mikey? Back to work already?"

Mikey hopped off the bed and found his Fusion Loader on the floor. "What, you don't want to be late, do you?"

"This is kind of a bigger deal than some stupid tunnel. We just had, like, for real, actual sex."

He poked his head above mattress level. "Yeah. We totally need to do that again sometime."

She threw a pillow at him. It flew harder than she intended. "Can't we, like, process this for a second"

Mikey didn't pop up this time. She crawled across the bed until he was back in her sight. He threw the pillow back at her, grinning. "Dorulumon's with you now." He started dressing.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" By now her questions were closer to pleas.

"Kinda forgot to eat today." His eyebrows flared. "That took a lot out of me."

His shirt wasn't even fully on before he opened the door. "Mikey Kudo!" she shouted, stopping him in his tracks. Her glare would have been far more effective if she wasn't naked on his bed. "Are we going to talk about what just happened?"

Mikey's smug grin was still there, but he looked around the room aimlessly. "What? Like you said, we had for real, actual sex. And it was really cool. And you're awesome. And we'll do it again. I promise."

With that, he slammed the door behind him, leaving her alone on the bed. As much as Angie wanted to ask herself what was going on, she already knew the answer. She just didn't want to accept it, because that raised a number of harder questions.

* * *

Jeri Katou knew she could have waited until the end of the day, but she didn't want to. She needed dirt, and tracked down her roommate immediately after lunch.

"Rika! Good afternoon!" Her bright smile and cheerful greeting made Rika glower.

"You need a favor from me, don't you?" Rika replied.

"Of course not! Just wanted to chat. Care to step into my office?"

Rika glared back. She knew her fellow tamer too well for it to be a friendly chat, or even anything professional. But Jeri also knew that Rika would never say no to her.

As soon as Jeri closed the door to her office, she said, "Takato told me about you and Marcus."

"Of course he did," Rika muttered, eyes rolling. "Did he tell you the part where we didn't do anything?"

Jeri giggled. "That's why you're here. I want to know the truth."

"That is the truth." Rika folded her arms. "Why would I lie about that?"

"Well, I get that you wouldn't want to tell Takato." Jeri pulled Rika's arms apart and took her hands. "But if there's something going on between you and Marcus, you can tell me. It's not a big deal."

Rika ripped her hands away. "There's nothing going on! I'm with Ken, remember?" She felt weird saying it, but it was the best way to get the heat off her.

"I know. That's why I thought you might want someone to confide in."

Jeri's smile was friendly and sincere, but it made Rika sneer. "Look, I'm new at this whole boyfriend thing, but I'd have to be pretty terrible to do that to Ken a day after..." She shook her head violently and grunted. "I'd never to do that to him!"

"Okay. I believe you." Jeri's smile somehow brightened. She put her hands up in surrender.

"Why would you say it's not a big deal? That would be awful." Rika stared back at Jeri, a cold eye on the brunette. Rika had been in a relationship for one day and saw the problem easily. Jeri had been dating for years and was ready to dismiss it. The eye narrowed. "Cheating on Ken would be awful, right?"

Jeri stepped back nervously. "Of course," she murmured.

Rika took two steps forward, glaring back. Indeed, she knew her fellow tamer too well. "Are you cheating on Takato?"

After squirming for far too long, Jeri squeaked, "M... maybe."

Even before she could react, Rika launched into an outburst: "What's wrong with you? You two have been attached since forever. It disgusts me. Now you're sneaking off with someone else? Who the hell is it?"

"Koichi." Jeri's head lowered.

"Koichi?! Good grief, why him? I could see falling for Koji maybe, but the other one?"

Playing with her thumbs, Jeri answered, "Well, you know, we... went through a lot of similar things. And we just sort of connected..."

"I suppose the fact that he used to turn into a lion has nothing to do with it?"

"It's a factor." Jeri sighed. "I guess I'm not as over it as I let on."

For a moment, Rika wanted to be sympathetic. But she and Takato were supposed to be Jeri's support group, not some secret lover. "Well, it's over now. He may be a silly little dimwit but I will not let you do that to Takato. You either break it off with Koichi or the whole castle's going to find out."

Jeri's eyes widened. "What?! Why? You'd actually tell people? I thought we were friends."

"I thought you cared about him. Like it or not, I'm part of this now." Rika's nostrils flared. "I need to tell somebody. I'm sure it'll be Renamon. But I'm back on patrol tomorrow, and that means Renamon's with Terriermon, Agumon, Lalamon and Guardromon. Four of the biggest loudmouths around. And if they found out..." She shook her head.

"But the time we get back, it's over. Understand?" Rika bore into Jeri's eyes until she got an unsteady nod. She spun around and opened the door, stopping before she walked out. Still angry, she added, "And if you need anyone to talk to about it, you find me. Got that?"

She slammed the door before Jeri could answer.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara never understood how the other kids did it. The attack was hardly threatening; Yushima only gave a disinterested nod when Sepikmon reported the marauders. But Isthmian Castle still had to be defended, and Takuya and Koji were intent on proving themselves to the old man. Unfortunately, as the attackers were a small band of various types of Meramon, Takuya's fire-based forms were of little use. Instead, he watched the battle from the top of one of the castle towers as other Digimon did all the fighting. The whole time he wondered how everyone else was used to this perspective.

Beowolfmon led the charge, engaging the SkullMeramon ringleader one-on-one. The Airdramon and Hippogriffomon that Takuya had personally fought two weeks ago were now his allies, swooping down on the remaining Meramon and BlueMeramon, knocking down several and flying too fast to be caught. A few Seadramon stationed in the outside moat stood ready to douse any remaining fires.

"Beo Saber!" Beowolfmon slashed through SkullMeramon, bringing the invader to his knees. The Spirit of Light held his sword at SkullMeramon's neck and waited for him to give the call to retreat. The air troops held just long enough to respect the order once it was given. The surviving marauders ran back into the mountains, certain to think twice about trying again.

"Looking good!" Takuya shouted as the army returned. Beowolfmon became Koji before passing through the temporary wooden drawbridge that filled in until another steel one could be built. Only half of the courtyard was water now; the rest of the pools had been filled in. It was easier to repair to ensure a similar water level, plus the field gave Takuya and Koji room to train, spar or play whatever sports they could concoct with the resources available.

While they had beds and never went hungry, there was no diversity or luxury in this new castle. The only recreational diversions available were a few books. Despite Yushima's claims, Takuya saw fishing as a food source only. Yet as humble and often boring as it was, there was an excitement about being closer to the action. Beyond those mountains there was a whole new continent. And no matter what Izzy had claimed, Takuya knew there had to be more discoveries to find and more clues to perhaps take them home.

It was also more hostile, and these skirmishes reminded them that the two of them wouldn't last long on their own. Takuya and Koji talked about it often after Yushima went to sleep: this was what they wanted. They wanted to be taking chances and uncovering new terrain and seeing just what kind of evil remained in the Digital World. They also knew they weren't the only ones who felt this way.

"Good job, boys," said Yushima as Koji and Takuya met him in the courtyard. "Dinner's almost ready. You'll never guess what we're having." He and Kamemon sat in front of a fire, each roasting several small fish.

Takuya and Koji looked at each other and frowned. This was going to be their challenge. They knew they wouldn't be able to follow their dreams alone. They also knew that they couldn't sell this sort of lifestyle. The transportation and communication line Tai and Yushima planned was encouraging. That offered the possibility of utilizing the river to bring in additional food and recreation options. With that, they had a fighting chance of recruiting allies to live with them.

Best of all, there was nothing Tai could do to stop them.

* * *

Yolei Inoue tried to stay focused on the slowly developing tunnel in front of her. After a few hours, Digmon and Dorulumon had made enough progress that it was getting harder to see them from outside. Cody was up front with the action making sure the drilling was going according to spec. Shurimon added supports and braces where necessary. She was the supervisor and so far was satisfied with everything she saw.

There was one annoying exception. Angie sat outside with Yolei, hunched over and staring blankly at the tunnel, barely moving. Yolei knew Mikey's immediate interest in her meant being on good terms with Angie was probably impossible. But that sort of thing usually dissipated when there was actual work involved. They were digidestined; putting aside petty drama to save the world was pretty important. Yet Angie looked like she wanted to have nothing to do with this.

Finally, Yolei realized she was in charge and had to be the boss. "Okay, Angie, here's the deal." Angie snapped out of her trance and turned Yolei's way. "You don't have to like me. You don't have to like that Mikey wanted to hook up with me. But we have a job and you need to work with me. You can't sit there and mope about it. It's not like anything actually happened."

Angie blinked, still lost in her thoughts. "It's not that," she mumbled.

"Well, what is it then? Because I can't have you this out of sorts."

The redhead stared back, taking a moment to decide if she actually wanted to continue the conversation before asking, "Do you think Mikey was really interested in you or just wanted to hook up?"

Yolei let out a laugh. "Are you kidding? It was right after we met. Of course it was a hookup. Before Henry, that's all I was doing here. And there's nothing wrong with that."

Angie looked down. "I'm not so sure."

"Look, I'm sure if you and Mikey ever got together it would be different, but-"

"Not so sure about that either."

That stopped Yolei. The digidestined looked at Angie for a long time before asking, "What makes you say that?" She shook her head. "Look, you are not a hookup. That's okay too. You are girlfriend material. You'd be, like, the coolest girlfriend ever. I can see why Mikey would look somewhere else if he just wanted to score. He'll go to you when he wants a real relationship. He's just not going to hook up with you out of the blue."

"I think he just did," Angie said, a pained look crossing her face.

"What?!" Yolei's eyes widened. "You mean you two...?" Angie nodded. "Whoa, bombshell."

"I don't think he thought anything of it. We were talking, we did it... then he was out the door."

Yolei shook her head. "I'm sure you're just imagining it. Mikey's not like that." Then she stared hard into Angie's eyes. "Is Mikey like that?"

"I don't know. He has a big heart and he can't stand people suffering. He wants to help and he wants to be the hero. And yet..." Angie shuddered. "Sometimes I get the feeling that in spite of all that... he never really cares. He does it because he feels like he has to. That if he throws himself at every crisis he sees, he doesn't have to think about himself... or his friends."

With a gulp, Yolei said, "Either way, if he took advantage of your feelings for him, that's really not cool."

"Feelings for him... I never could tell how I felt about him. I should be totally in love with the guy. I definitely worry about him all the time and I guess I'd do anything for him... but I don't know. Something about him always kept me from being sure he's who I want to be with."

Yolei put a hand on Angie's back. "You know, this is getting a little personal. Why don't you go talk to Dorulumon instead?" Not only did Yolei know she was getting in over her head, she didn't like seeing her image of a perfect Mikey being shattered.

"Dorulumon?"

"Your partner. First place to go for all your personal problems. He's due for a break anyway and I don't think I could get him to stop." Yolei pushed Angie into the tunnel.

To Angie, it felt more like a cave. Electricity was farther down the list, so the only light came from the large work lamps at the end. The air was dirty; she could feel the rock particles every time she inhaled. They made her eyes water too; at least she hoped that was the reason she was crying.

She had once spent years believing her entire purpose on Earth was to keep Mikey Kudo upright so he could continue saving the world. Even before he literally saved the world, she thought he was destined for greatness. Meanwhile, she saw herself as a humble, average girl whose only saving grace was being lucky enough to attach herself to someone magnificent. She had nothing to offer but her ability to support someone with everything.

Before being pulled into the Digital World this second time, where were they? She was in her last year of high school, her management skills enough to keep her head above water, but only enough to plan her own secure path. He was in college, but as far as she could tell he didn't have a plan or a path. He didn't seem to think it was a problem. Angie couldn't be sure it was.

One thing was certain: he didn't need her. No matter which world he was in, he was destined to do Mikey things in his Mikey way and get Mikey acclaim. Whether she was by his side or nowhere to be found, she was still just Angie. Whenever he said he couldn't have done something without her, he was humoring her. All the glory he shared with her was charity. She continued to stumble over the path covered in loose gravel, the air getting thicker and harder to take in.

Mikey had his own life; she knew intimate details of his classes, his teachers, his friends, his romantic conquests and everything else in his routine. Angie had her own life too, filled with all the same things. She couldn't think of a single time when he had asked about them outside of an obligatory "how about you?" He never quite paid attention to her answer. Grades... clubs... dating... basic best friend stuff and he never cared. He didn't know her. Suddenly she wasn't sure if she really knew him.

The crying became heavier as she stumbled along, seeing her whole purpose in life suddenly cast in doubt. Who was Mikey Kudo? The real Mikey that saw her as another notch on the belt killed the construct she had created years ago. Now she saw nothing ahead. Even the lights in front of her faded as she felt herself falling forward to the ground, her consciousness slipping.

Nothing cushioned her fall.

* * *

Joe Kido made it a point to stay by his patients in cases like these until they were awake. As Angie began to stir, he put down his book and watched her open her eyes. "What happened?" she mumbled, taking in her new surroundings and the plastic oxygen mask around her mouth.

"High fever, exhaustion, and breathing in all that junk the drilling puts in the air." Joe stood up. "I'm keeping you here overnight so you can rest. I'm going to talk to Tai about making sure you guys have masks... and ear protection... and helmets." He shook his head. "That whole thing is a death trap."

Angie felt the mask. "Do I have to wear this all night?"

"You can take it off once you feel better. Also, if anyone visits, keep it to one person at a time. I don't know if it was stress or you worked too hard, but you really need to rest."

She closed her eyes. "Can you lie and say I shouldn't talk to anybody?"

He smiled. "Absolutely." Angie smiled back.

Joe stepped behind the curtain to honor his own advice. He didn't get halfway back to his desk at the entrance when Mikey rushed into the room, ran up to him and said, "I heard Angie's in here."

The medical director held out a hand. "She is. She's fine. She's awake. But she needs her rest and can't have-" Mikey ducked past him and pulled the curtain to her bed. "...any visitors."

"What happened? Are you okay?!" Mikey was almost shouting.

Angie closed her eyes and took a deep breath from the air feeding into her mask. "I get myself in trouble... now you want to talk."

Mikey froze. "But... you're okay?"

She shook her head. "Do you ever listen to anything I say?"

"What?"

"Do you even know who I am?"

He chuckled. "Angie, you're my best friend. Of course-"

"Best friend?!" She tried to sit up, but a loud beep from a nearby monitor convinced her to stay down. "We haven't been best friends in years. Now we're best friends?" She huffed. "The hell do I have to do to be your girlfriend?"

"Whoa, girlfriend, what?" Mikey stepped back. "Where did this come from?"

Angie's eyes bore a hole in one of the ceiling lights. "Do you really think that little of me? Did you never consider the possibility that after all these years I might want to be more than friends?"

"Do you?"

She looked at him out of the side of her eye. "Don't change the subject. It didn't even cross your mind before you started kissing me out of the blue?"

"Well, no, I just..." He held out a hand. The longer he grasped for something to say, the longer it shook. "Did I do this?"

"No," she answered. "I did this. This is me not seeing who you really are. The kind of person that will save other people even if it kills himself. The kind of person that goes out of his way to help someone else's life because he can't keep his own straight. The kind of person that will trample over anyone close to him to do a good deed for some stranger. That's who you are, Mikey."

"Angie, how can you say that?" He ran up to her bed. "You don't think I care about you?"

"You probably don't even know if that was my first time."

"What?"

She rolled onto her side, facing him. "Today. Was that my first time with a boy?"

Mikey stopped. "Wow, I didn't even think about that. I was your first?"

She shook her head. "Last year. You didn't know him. Nice guy, 'til he dumped me."

"Huh," Mikey said, scratching his head. "I had no idea you had a boyfriend."

"I shared pictures of us online. You never bothered to check or stay in touch. When we broke up, Jeremy posted the sweetest cat picture to cheer me up. That's what friends do. I never thought about it until now."

He dropped to a knee. That smile that had won her over hours before now repulsed her. "C'mon. We need each other."

"That's a lie. You don't need me. You do fine without me. And if you really think that, you need to grow up. And let's be honest- I never needed you." She turned, facing up again, struggling to keep her voice from cracking. "And I don't want you anymore. Just go."

Mikey popped up, his voice becoming increasingly frantic. "No, I can't! Look at you! If I did this... if I did something to hurt you, let me make it better." She remained silent, looking away. He leaned over her, determined to make eye contact. "Angie, c'mon! You know I can't-"

Her eyes locked on his as she spat, "Don't say it. Your back is all I ever see." She mashed the call button next to her bed.

"Oh, thank God," Joe said, bursting into the room. "I was wondering if I should interrupt." He put a hand on Mikey's shoulder. "Let's get her some rest."

Mikey let Joe nudge him a few steps towards the curtain, but resisted. His eyes grew wilder. "No! I can't just leave her like this. She's hurt and I need to-"

"No, Mikey," Angie said, suddenly calm. She turned her head his way, tears in her eyes. "I'm not hurt. I'm better now."

She peeled off her oxygen mask and said, "See? I'm fine. You can go now."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 13: "Bittersweet"**  
In this episode, Marcus's team explores a hidden pyramid and finds a disturbing enemy with shocking secrets. Sora finds out about Tai's affair with Yolei. Jeri and Koichi talk about the future of their relationship.

" _I don't care how long we're here. I am never going to leave your side."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** One of the odd things about Xros Wars is that the character of Taiki has more interesting wrinkles away from the original anime. The notion of his altruism interfering with his personal ambitions is brought up in the manga. The dub also makes Mikey more abrasive and arrogant, with less respect for Angie. Both of these elements are pushed here, and exploring the darker side of Mikey's personality will be a major part of the second half of the story.

Thomas's theory about life in a timeless Digital World making Kari being emotionally ready for sexual activity despite being physically too young is one posited by the old Lord Archive stories. We won't be exploiting this concept to force anything explicit (everyone's still being treated as roughly their age, albeit with a little more wisdom and maturity), but it's worth recognizing.

Despite Thomas saying it was impossible, Izzy going into exile after making an unwanted advance on Kari actually happens in my previous story Level 1: Worlds.

We've joked about Yoshi and Sora having the same voice actress (it's used again in a slightly less comical manner next time), but Angie's in the club too, adding some context to who Thomas and Izzy feared was in the elevator and some odd irony to her interactions with Tai.

This episode was written at the time the first tri. movie aired. Expect more references to start trickling in.

2duqRuW1SCo  
B00137UWLG


	14. 13- Bittersweet

**Author's Note**  
We've reached another stopping point- welcome to the mid-series finale. It's time to take a break to turn our attention to the new tri. movie this weekend and, most importantly, replenish the backlog. I'm currently halfway through the next block, which is better shape than I was in after the episode 6 break. Plus I only have to review tri. on System Restore instead of that, the second half of Fusion and Hunters. I'm targeting a late April/early May resumption, but I'm hitting a busy stretch elsewhere so we'll see how it goes. As always, I like to hear your thoughts!

 **Neverworld**

 _Everyone's a novelist_  
 _and everyone can sing._  
 _But no one talks when the TV's on._  
 _\- Moxy Fr_ _ü_ _vous, "Bittersweet"_

 **Episode 13**

Cody Hida tried to figure out how much of the last month he had spent watching Digmon drill things. His partner was at it again, although this time it was into a crag almost a hundred miles away from the castle. The rocky hill was directly in the path of the planned rail line to Isthmian Castle. The tunnel back home was complete and track laying was already well underway, but if they could blast through here as well it would shorten the trip and avoid either an uneven mountain pass or a wide river needing a bridge. Digmon was checking its composition to see if a second tunnel was feasible.

The digidestined couldn't help but find it a very curious landmass. It was the only one in sight, actually. The rest of the horizon was a vast plain with nothing but the occasional forest breaking it up. Cody knew there were reasonable explanations for how a mountain ends up alone in the middle of nowhere, doubly so in the Digital World where such landforms were often arbitrary. It was just an odd thing to be sitting there surrounded by flat terrain.

His attention turned back to the the job as the drilling stopped, far earlier than he had expected. "Cody?" Digmon shouted from inside. "You might want to have a look at this."

Cody sent a message to Yolei calling her over and crawled in. As it was just for exploration, the hole was narrow and he ran out of light quickly.

"Just a little farther!" It was Armadillomon's voice up ahead. Cody scurried up to it. "We were hoping it would go from rock to dirt, but you need to see this."

He reached forward and found the surface ahead completely covered. This was not surprising. The surprise was how smooth it was, and how much it gave. Cody wasn't able to break through it, but pushed in a few inches. "What is it?"

Armadillomon clawed in and tore off a piece. A dim red glow emanated from the gap he created. "Now that's messed up. Let's see what it is."

Yolei and Hawkmon were waiting when they crawled out. Davis, Ken and their partners stood behind her. "So how many more weeks of winter do we got?" Veemon asked.

"This isn't a normal mountain," Cody said as Yolei pulled him out of the hole. He took the sample Armadillomon had taken- thick, green and organic. "This was covering the inside. We also saw a light."

Ken looked it over. "It looks like a giant leaf. How could this survive inside a mountain?"

Davis rubbed his hands. "Cool, a mystery. Let's check it out."

As he approached the hole, Yolei grabbed the back strap of his goggles and dragged him to the ground. "Davis, remember what happened last time the four of us started exploring without telling anybody?"

He popped up and turned around. "Aw, what's the worst that could happen?" Seven pairs of eyes glared at him.

Cody popped open his D-Terminal and started to type. "We're just supposed to check its composition. If there's any possibility of something bigger going on in there, we need it report it and wait for further instructions."

"Which hopefully involves heading back and not having to deal with it," Yolei added.

"So how do we find out what's in there?" Davis moaned.

Yolei smirked. "Duh, same way we do everything: get Marcus to do it."

* * *

Sora Takenouchi enjoyed her lunch dates with Tai as much as any of the private activities they now found themselves engaging in. Whether this was the genuine Tai Kamiya relationship experience package or he was determined not to blow it with her now that he was getting his shot, she was very happy with the first few weeks. How he was suddenly finding time for her she didn't know, but he was and she appreciated it.

Tai was just droning on about the latest progress on the rail line, but she liked hearing about her friends' lives. She was so impressed that he and Izzy and Kari were helping build a train route more than a hundred miles long. It was a reminder of how far they had come since their harrowing early days in the world. The fact that she could feel fulfilled in her comfortable hospitality job showed their progress.

Perhaps it was that comfort that led her to the next subject. She had been curious about it since they started dating and once Tai was done talking about railroads, she brought it up: "So Tai, I've been wondering about this for a long time... in all these years since we moved in, I never saw you with anybody else. Unless I completely missed something, you were just as alone as I was."

Tai's eyes widened and he looked around nervously. She chuckled and added, "It's not a big deal. I was just curious. As much time as we spent together, as far as I knew you could have been seeing everybody in the castle."

"No!" he stammered. Still uneasy, he answered, "No... I guess I never really thought about it. Other things on my mind, you know?"

She nodded, but frowned. "That's a little sad. All these years and you never found a way to spend even a little bit of time with a girl..." Her eyes shifted. "Or guy."

Tai jumped in his seat. "Guy?"

Sora shrugged. "I don't know. You and Izzy sometimes..." She looked back at him. "But to go this long... that's almost as bad as what I went through."

He was still leaning back, watching her shoulders slump. He didn't want to tell her he held back because of her. While he would never be sure how successful he would have been, he could have tried harder. Tai didn't want her to feel bad for what were ultimately his choices. He didn't know if it was some sort of trap, but he sighed and confessed, "Well... to be totally honest, I never dated anybody, but..."

Sora nodded slowly. "It was one of... those situations?"

"It was only one time! One girl! I hope you're not mad."

She squeezed his hand. "It's all right. I always hated how easy those were here, but it's in the past."

He sighed in relief. "Good. It was just a weird thing that happened and we needed it and..." Her eyebrows started to narrow. "...and maybe I should stop talking about it. I need to get back upstairs anyway."

Sora smiled, leaned over the table and kissed him. "Good plan. I'll see you tonight."

She stayed in her seat. Although she was happy he wasn't so weighed down by his position that he couldn't enjoy anyone's company, it didn't make her any less curious. "Nobody" would have bothered her. "Everybody" would have bothered her more. His answer was completely reasonable. But there was something about "one girl" that she was going to have trouble managing. She was better off not thinking about it, but she could already tell that was going to be impossible.

Which girl?

* * *

Rika Nonaka hated everything about this mountain from the second she entered the tunnel. Agumon needed twenty minutes of straight clawing to penetrate the thick leaves surrounding the interior. She doubted he was finished for the day. Marcus and Henry helped her through the final bit of the leaf barrier and let her take in the surroundings. The dim red light was insufficient, so she turned on a flashlight.

Inside this cave was a full jungle. Plant life surrounded them from the tall trees growing everywhere to the thick vines both dangling from them and littering the ground, threatening to trip anyone who wasn't careful. There were flowers and ferns, and of course the thick canopy that not only covered them overhead but completely encased them like a dome. Yet despite all the life, the air was dry and the only light was useless for photosynthesis.

Kazu and Yoshi came through next, although his Digimon had problems behind them. "C'mon, fatso, push!" Kazu shouted. He needed help from Henry and Renamon to get Guardromon through the narrow hole and upright.

Lalamon brought up the rear and floated near Yoshi. "Something's funny about this place."

"Something's definitely not right here," Yoshi said in agreement. She threw her hands up. "Well, we got through so obviously we can run a train through it. I say job well done."

She looked at Marcus. He just grew a giant grin and marched ahead. Yoshi put her hands down and muttered, "A girl can dream..."

The centerpiece of this subterranean biome was a giant mound of vines and ivy. Once they got closer to it, they began to realize it wasn't a natural creation.

"A pyramid?" Henry observed. Somewhere under the plant life they could make out the distinct shape of a Mesoamerican pyramid. Further investigation uncovered the stone foundation. Some slashing from Agumon exposed the steps. Marcus started to climb, with Agumon quickly following.

Rika shouted, "Dammit, Marcus, get back down here!"

"What? I want to see if we can get inside!" he shouted back. "At the very least I'll get a good view."

She and Yoshi watched him intently. The moment they expected came halfway up when the vines collapsed. Instead of falling down, however, Marcus and Agumon fell through them.

"Figures..." Rika muttered as the rest of the party climbed up after him. They reached the spot where he and Agumon had fallen and peered into the hole.

Marcus and his partner were waving back. "Found an entrance! This is great!"

With help from a machete Yoshi wielded, the rest of the team hacked through the vines and joined him. The red light was brighter here, allowing them to realize they were in a hallway leading further into the pyramid. Marcus shined his flashlight down it and started walking. The others grumbled and followed.

The first chamber was about 500 square feet of nothing but another hallway, this one sloping down. Kazu inspected the walls, but everybody else silently moved on ahead. They all froze when one of the walls started moving.

"I didn't do it!" Kazu shouted.

Henry looked at his foot. It stood on a pressure plate. He sighed. "It's gonna be one of these days, isn't it?"

Everyone (except Marcus) got behind their Digimon, ready to engage whatever was on the other side, whether booby trap or Digimon. It was the latter, but instead of the powerful enemy they were expecting, it was a little Tsukaimon.

"Wow, someone needs to up their trap game," Terriermon said. "He's kinda cute!"

Tsukaimon flew forward and tackled Terriermon, knocking him into Henry's feet. He flew up again, but Marcus met him with a fist and slammed him into the wall. It was the first time they noticed that wall moving too. This one revealed a BlackGabumon, who spat an attack at the group immediately.

"Guys, go ahead!" Marcus shouted. "Who knows how many more we'll have to deal with?"

"What, and you're just going to fight all of them yourself?" Rika said as Agumon returned fire against the BlackGabumon.

Marcus held up his charged fist. "Bring it on."

"Sounds good to me," Yoshi said. She and Henry grabbed their partners and plowed ahead. Rika and Renamon followed them.

The Tsukaimon got his bearings back. Marcus was ready to give the purple critter another pummeling, until it and BlackGabumon started emitting a black aura.

"What's happening, Boss?" Agumon cried, backing up until he and Marcus had their backs to each other. He got his answer as a dark fog shrouded both of the enemies. When it dissipated, Devimon and BlackGarurumon were in front of them.

Marcus grinned. "Okay, that works too," he said, reaching for his digivice.

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa had just finished her menu planning when Sora entered her small office/break room, holding a laundry bag. It was the start of a conversation that began the same every week and ended up going one of two ways.

"Anything you need us to wash?" Sora asked. Mimi said no.

Sora lingered for just a second and Mimi smiled. This was the best possibility; Sora left immediately if she didn't have a specific issue/problem she wanted to discuss. "What's on your mind?" Mimi asked, folding her hands.

"Okay, so..." Sora set the bag down and stared at the ceiling. "You're going to think I'm crazy for asking but, did you and Tai ever... uh..." Mimi frowned. "Do anything together since we got here?"

With a steeled face, Mimi asked, "Since we came to the Digital World or since we moved into the castle?"

"Into the castle." The digidestined of love shook her head. "I'm blocking out everything before that."

Instantly, Mimi's face brightened. "Nope! Why do you ask?"

Sora raised an eyebrow at Mimi. "Wait, why does that-"

"Don't worry about it!" Mimi chuckled. "Trying to work out the boyfriend's hit list, huh?"

"One girl!" Sora exclaimed. "If it was two or three I wouldn't think about it, but just one?" She shrugged. "I figured you'd either be the one or you'd know who it was."

Mimi reached into her desk drawer and pulled out a small bound journal. She placed it in front of Sora and gestured at it dramatically. "Sora, this is a very special book. It contains the records of every relationship, affair, and suggestive misunderstanding that passes through these walls. I pride myself on being very thorough."

Sora backed away, frowning. "That's... a little much for me. I don't need to read up on people's dirty laundry." She looked down at her bag. "I see enough of it already. Besides, is leaving that around here a good idea? What if Tommy finds it?"

"Dear, Tommy's my ace reporter." She winked. "Got him on the Zoe/Jeremy beat right now." Mimi returned the book to the drawer. "And it's for my eyes only. Don't want it being used for evil. I only show it to you so you can trust me when I say Tai's clean."

"Clean?"

"I have nothing. Far as I can tell, he was a monk until you two got together. Really boring! So either he's lying or he snuck something past me."

Sora shook her head. "He wouldn't lie about that. He knows how I feel about hookups."

Thinking for a moment, Mimi nodded in agreement. "True. He'd probably think being chaste was some crazy romantic gesture and use it to impress you." She popped out of her chair and started pacing around. "Okay, so who's our mystery girl?"

"Mimi, don't get all obsessive over this. I feel bad enough that I'm thinking about it."

Mimi held up a finger. "No need to get obsessive. We need to get deductive!" Sora rolled her eyes, but let Mimi continue. "Taking out you, me and Kari, there's eight girls. I'm ruling out Yolei because she tells me everything." She gestured to the drawer. "She's a top contributor too. Right now, she's covering Rika and Ken... that's getting steamy!"

"Rika and Ken? Seriously?"

"No. They kissed a few times. That's as steamy as Rika gets." Mimi stroked her chin. "You can cross her off the list. Suzie's younger than Kari, so she's out. And Jeri already has two boyfriends..."

"Yoshi?"

Mimi shook her head. "Nope. Her problems are well documented."

Sora's eyes widened with concern. "What problems?"

"Okay, well documented to me." Mimi stuck out her tongue. "Trust me- she's out."

"How about one of the new girls? Maybe him and Nene..."

Mimi put her hands on her hips. "Sora, first off, we both know Angie's more his type." Sora's mouth fell open, but no response came out in argument. "Besides, from what I gather from Nene, both of them were untouched until 'he who shall not be named' happened."

"And you wonder why I don't like hookups," Sora muttered, narrowing her eyes.

"So there you go- it's Zoe!" Mimi smiled and put an arm around Sora's shoulder. "She works upstairs with him, she's not usually tied down... and judging by what's in my book, I bet she's got a bit of goggle fever."

Sora tried to picture Tai and Zoe together. She couldn't, but that was probably for the best. Mimi's explanation made enough sense, so that should have settled it.

"It's not Zoe," said Tommy, standing behind them.

They turned around. Sora was blushing. Mimi was curious. "Why do you say that?"

Tommy held up his D-Tector. "I overheard you guys, so I just asked her about it. She told me she never had the guts to suggest it."

Mimi's face lit up and she leaped forward and threw her arms around her assistant. "That's my boy!" She smiled back at Sora. "He's not best in the business for nothing!"

Sora groaned. And then there were zero.

* * *

Henry Wong carefully checked the walls as they descended into the pyramid. He doubted the traps in the first chamber were the only ones they'd find and the vines made concealing them easy.

"Whatever we're looking for, it can't be that much further," Yoshi said. The red light was brighter now, but their flashlights reflected it too much to let them see down the ramp.

"So what, now you want to explore this place?" Kazu asked her.

"Now there are Digimon trying to kill us. That means something's down here and we need to deal with it."

"Am I the only one who was a little curious that it was those two particular Digimon?"

"What are you talking about?" Rika muttered. "Marcus is going to be lucky if it's just those two."

"No, I mean..." She stared blankly at him. "Never mind."

Yoshi scoffed. "I can't believe he'd hang back and make us-"

Suddenly, a part of the floor collapsed under Yoshi. She fell through screaming; her only reaction was to grab Lalamon and drag her down with her. The three tamers reached for her, but she was gone.

"Yoshi!" Rika shouted. "Are you okay?!" She shined her flashlight down the sudden hole, but again it reflected the red haze. She and the others waited for a response, looking at each other nervously.

Finally, they heard a faint shout from below: "This is the worst!" They continued to stare at each other; knowing Yoshi, that meant anything from a bumpy landing to instant mortal peril.

When nothing further came, Terriermon shouted, "Moumantai!"

"Henry, I'm killing your partner," Yoshi cried. "I'll see what's going on down here. You guys keep going. I'm sure we'll meet up later."

The three tamers continued their descent, careful to look for any more weak walls or traps that would reunite them with Yoshi. They didn't find any. At the bottom, the hallway opened into a giant chamber that occupied most of the pyramid's interior. Overhead lamps bathed the entire room in red light, allowing them to see the only creature in it. They couldn't tell if the Digimon was encased on top of the tall mass of thorny vines or whether the vines were part of his body.

Its voice was low, not bothering to make eye contact as it spoke: "You humans dare intrude on my domain? I will ensure you never leave."

Vines shot out towards Henry, Rika and Kazu. Terriermon, Renamon and Guardromon all reacted in time to slash them away. "Hey, hold up!" Kazu shouted. "We're just looking around. You really don't want to pick a fight with us. It won't end well."

"You humans think you can defeat me? I am the master of destruction and creation. Of earth and heaven. Of death and life. Of darkness and light."

"Sure, cool," said Terriermon. "You don't mind if we lay some train track outside, do you?"

"Terriermon!" Henry and Rika shouted.

"And you Digimon, siding with these humans," the Digimon's voice grew louder. "Destroying the land, enslaving us all. This world I created was beautiful until this scourge arrived."

"Whoa, you created?!" Henry exclaimed, looking up from his D-Power.

"You made this place?" Rika added.

"Made... shaped... controlled..." said the beast. "I am no less than a god here."

"Then why are we here?" Renamon asked. "And can you send us home?"

"I would sooner eliminate your presence from the face of this world... from _any_ world infected by your kind!" A dozen vines lashed out at them. Their Digimon stopped half of them and Kazu dove behind Guardromon while Henry was able to dodge. Four vines grabbed Rika and slammed her against the wall. Electricity shot through all of them, rippling through Rika's body as she screamed. The torture continued for several seconds until Renamon broke her loose.

Kazu took Rika from Renamon as Henry evolved Terriermon to Rapidmon to deal with the assault. He too took cover behind Guardromon. "Is she okay?"

Rika winced. "I'm... all right."

"So check this out..." Kazu showed Henry his D-Power. "He says he's a god but this says he's just a plain old Ultimate." The listing revealed its name as Algomon. "Nothing we can't handle."

A few vines crept out from the back wall and almost got to Rika's feet before Renamon arrived to deal with them. "Perfect," Rika said. Her breathing remained labored. "Idiot wants to wipe out humans? We've heard that line before."

Then she passed out.

* * *

Yolei Inoue couldn't wait for Henry to get back for a multitude of reasons. At the moment, reason number one was her growing frustration at programming Terriermech's ears. It was her one obsession when she wasn't involved with the rail project, yet a solution to create a workable code that wasn't a mess eluded her.

She was happy for the knock on her door; she could have used a distraction and opened it without asking. It was only Sora dropping off some laundry, but it would do.

"Sorry to bother you. I couldn't get it done while you were out." Sora set the folded pile of clothes on Yolei's dresser. "How'd everything go?"

"Good, good! Cody discovered a cave full of mysterious plant life in the mountain." Yolei grinned and pointed to Sora. "And we _didn't_ charge in blind! We got Marcus's team to do it! See, we learned our lesson."

One of Sora's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Wait, is that still a spoiler?"

Sora kept a straight face. "No, I mean if you were nervous about going in there, why would you be okay with Henry doing it?

"Oh!" Yolei waved her off. "No, they've got four Megas, plus Marcus. They'll be fine." Sora stared back. Yolei's grin started to wear off. Suddenly, she blurted, "Dammit, now I'm worried about him! Stop doing that!"

Sora leaned against the dresser. "I'm sure they'll be all right."

"Yeah, yeah..." Yolei sat on the bed. "So everything still good with you and Tai?"

"Actually, yeah," Sora said with a nod. She sounded surprised. "It's been very good. I was expecting it to be a little weird or he wouldn't have much time for it with everything upstairs but... we're just sort of going with it." She smiled. "It's nice."

Yolei smiled back. "That's good to hear. You both deserve to be happy for once."

Sora chuckled sadly. "Did you know that in all the years we've been here, he's only been with one other girl? He had to have been as lonely as I was."

"O-one girl?" Yolei suddenly tensed up. "Who said that?"

"He did." Sora shook her head. "I know it's terrible, but I'm dying to know who it is. Just one, you know? Who could it be?"

Yolei gulped. "Did you ask Mimi? She keeps track of that stuff."

"She didn't know either. We went through everybody and couldn't figure it out. We figured you would have told her all about it."

"Well yeah, totally!" Yolei blurted. "Mimi and I share everything with each other. Why would I not tell her about something as crazy as that?" She forced a laugh.

She also said it too quickly. Sora narrowed her eyes. Yolei stared back, hands starting to shake.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Sora asked.

Yolei threw her hands up. "Look, I can explain. It was a really weird situation and we just sort of..."

As she trailed off, trying to find an explanation, Sora stopped her. "It's okay, I don't need the details. I don't want the details. I'm not mad at either of you. It's just surprising, that's all. You two were never that close."

"It was complicated. Let's just leave it at that." Yolei lowered her head, shoulders slumping. Bad enough that somebody knew about it, she couldn't possibly talk about it. "I'm surprised he told you."

Sora headed for the door; there was no reason to drag the uncomfortable conversation out. "Well, he just gave me a number. Besides, we're in a relationship now. We're supposed to be honest about that sort of thing."

She nodded and left Yolei to her thoughts, not realizing how much those last words stung.

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda needed a moment to adjust to the light filling the room. It was still that disorienting red color, but now there was so much of it that her eyes struggled to process it. She was in a new chamber, probably on the bottom floor of the pyramid. Vines still covered the walls and now much of the floor. Contrasting the red were two glowing bright green beams embedded into the wall, shining through the vines covering them.

Those were her first targets. She and Lalamon nodded at each other, she readied her machete and they approached the lights cautiously. They stopped a few feet in front of them. Yoshi pointed.

"Seed Blast!" Lalamon's attack ruptured the vines, sending most of them to the ground. Yoshi took care of one dangling survivor with her machete and jumped back to see what the had uncovered. She almost dropped her weapon when she saw them.

Two bodies, both human and both seemingly lifeless, hovered in glowing green tubes protected by giant vines. Yoshi felt nauseous; no amount of DATS or police training could desensitize her to humans this helpless and tortured. She hated seeing Digimon in these situations, but other people made her picture herself in that situation. It was sickening.

Only after she forced herself to look at them again did she fully grasp what she was seeing. She didn't recognize these boys, both blond teenagers maybe two or three years apart. Their clothes were similar in design and torn in several places. The elaborate conditions they were held in were the only clues they were still alive. Still, there was no way to tell how long they had been there. Somehow, Yoshi knew exactly what she had found.

Lalamon voiced it first. "You don't think this is... them, do you?"

"I think it is..." Yoshi mumbled back. "Do you realize what this means?"

"That you can finally afford that massaging neck pillow with the bonus you'll get?"

"Lalamon!" After her outburst, Yoshi paused. "You think they'll do that?" She didn't want to admit it crossed her mind.

"Sure, if you can get them out alive. No pressure!"

There was, of course. All the hopes of everyone who once knew these two were now on her. If she messed anything up, nobody would be able to trust her again. Her hands started to shake- a problem as one of them held a large blade. She cautiously pressed against one of the tubes. It was not glass, but a clear gel that for all she knew completely encased them. Yoshi was able to push her hand into it, enough to feel a churning sensation inside, but she yanked it back when she felt it go numb.

Her only remaining option was the large vine on the floor connecting both tubes. No doubt it was protecting the bodies, but she couldn't tell if it was keeping them asleep or alive. She knew doing nothing wouldn't set them free, so she took a deep breath, raised her machete, and started hacking.

It took several minutes to break through the thick outer skin. Once she did, that same clear gel started oozing out of the vine. Her legs tingled as the gel splashed onto her calves. Yoshi instructed Lalamon to wipe it off as she continued slashing at the vine. More and more gel spilled out, covering her boots, but she finally severed the plant. The gel in both tubes started to drain.

Once they were empty, both bodies started shifting, although neither appeared to be awake. The first sign of life came as the older boy's nose twitched. Yoshi ran up to him, cut through a thin bit of film and took his hand.

"Hello? Can you hear me? Are you there?" She was shouting, but kept calm. Now her training became useful as she lured the boy back to consciousness. The second boy stirred; she ordered Lalamon to tend to him.

The first grunted. Yoshi's excitement grew as it was clear that they were both alive and both waking. Now full of confidence, she wasn't afraid of using his name: "Matt! Matt, can you hear me?"

His mouth started to move. In a faint, weary voice, he mumbled, "Sora?" His eyes slowly opened, needing a moment to focus and find a target. He found Yoshi and frowned. "No... who are you?"

"Yoshino Fujieda, Digimon Data Squad," she said with a sharp grin and a firm salute. "I'm going to get you out of here."

Matt struggled to force his arm to move, finally convincing one to feel his forehead. "You sound like Sora."

Yoshi shrugged. "I get that a lot. You can move?"

"I think so. So you know Sora?"

"Yes!" She nodded, happy to engage him in reassuring conversation. It was an encouraging sign. "They're all back at the castle. They'll be happy to see you."

Yoshi helped him out of the tube. Walking was still difficult; Matt put most of his weight on her. "Where's TK?"

She looked at the other tube, where Lalamon coaxed TK to life. The younger brother's eyes opened, saw his rescuer and mumbled, "Lalamon?"

Yoshi scoffed. "Yeah, figures, he knows you."

As TK woke his muscles up, eventually clinging to Lalamon as she pulled him out of the tube, Matt asked, "Where are we?"

"Inside a pyramid inside a jungle inside a mountain. It's a villain's lair trifecta. But don't sweat it." Yoshi almost lost her grip on his side, but caught him before he fell. "You two are going to be fine."

* * *

Tai Kamiya sat in the courtyard, finishing off a burger and patting Agumon's head. He always worried about teams on missions. Usually he preferred not to hear what the patrol team engaged in day to day. Knowing they were involved in something, activity Command's radar only barely noticed, made him nervous. Watching day turn to night in the fresh air, with his partner by his side, calmed him.

At least it did when he didn't have to do his job. "Jeri?" he called out to the girl approaching the front gate alone.

She stopped, nervously turning around. "Just going for a quick walk."

"You know the rules." Tai nodded at Agumon.

The Digimon nodded back and walked up to Jeri. "I can go with you."

Jeri grimaced. "Um... thank you." She opened the gate and walked out with her appointed guardian.

Tai sat back on the bench. Thankfully, new company arrived to replace Agumon. "What's wrong?" Sora asked, sitting next to him.

His first instinct was to lie and pretend he wasn't worried about anything. Then he realized he didn't have to with her. "Just worrying about Marcus and them. Who knows what they ran into?"

She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him in. "They can take care of themselves. It's Marcus. If he can't do it, they've got Rika."

"I know..." he sighed, his head resting on her shoulder. "I need to stop thinking about it."

Sora chuckled. She knew just how to do that. "So... Yolei, huh?"

He jolted out of her arms and stared at her. She only smiled. "How did you...?"

"She was never good at lying to us."

It didn't calm him down. "Okay, you have to swear not to tell anybody. This can't get out."

She narrowed an eyebrow. "But why? I doubt anybody else is going to care. I'm sure Henry knows she was with a few people before they got together."

He cringed. "Yeah... before..."

Sora glowered. "Are you saying this happened after they started dating?" Tai looked away. She popped up and pinched his ear. "Tai?!"

"Look, it was really complicated! I know it was wrong, but-"

"But what?! She cheated on him! And you helped!" Sora fell back into the bench, folding her arms. "This better be good, Tai."

"I thought you didn't want the details." She only glared back. He surrendered. "It was Henry's first time back after they got together. She was looking forward to spending time with him and he was too busy yelling at me to care. We were both so frustrated by the whole thing that..."

She shook her head. "That's no excuse for something like that."

He sat down, careful not to sit too close to her. "I know it wasn't right, but it felt like the easiest way to feel better about it." Tai shrugged. "And it worked. It settled her down enough to fix things and I..." He slumped over.

"You what?" Sora asked, calmer but still unsatisfied.

Tai stared at the ground, thinking about the underlying reasons he could have been so attracted to her in that given moment. "All these years and I still don't know if I'm handling everything right. There's a lot of people here who think I could do better. Or that someone else should be in charge. When someone like Henry starts screaming at me, it makes me wonder if they're right."

"Tai..."

"But Yolei..." Tai sighed. "After everything that happened to them, after years of stuff back home they won't tell us about... she still supports me. She and Cody are right there fighting with Takuya and them. They hear everything that gets said about us. But they still have my back. It means a lot to me. I don't hear that very often from anyone downstairs."

Sora inched closer. "You can't listen to that. You can't doubt yourself."

"But I know I don't know everything. I know I screw up sometimes. Who doesn't?" He turned to her, his eyes soft and his head shaking. "I miss having somebody I could trust telling me what needs to get done."

Her arms wrapped around him, clutching him tight. "You're doing a good job. There are plenty of us downstairs who feel that way. I do. And Mimi... Joe... Jeri..." Tai looked up at the closed front gate as Sora continued, "I know some of the guys want you doing more, but look at us. We're safe. We're stable. And for the most part we get along."

She bit her lip, looking at the ground. "Do you remember how we treated each other before we got into the castle? All the arguments? All the terrible things we said to each other? I didn't think we'd ever get past that. But we have. Thanks to you." She squeezed his hand. "And because of you, the others will never have to go through what we did."

Tai squeezed back. "I just wish everyone felt that way."

"Well, I do. And I wouldn't feel this protected under anyone else. And I don't care how long we're here. I am never going to leave your side."

* * *

Matt Ishida was still getting his bearings back as Yoshi led him and TK through the only exit in the room. His entire body was weak and walking even a short distance was exhausting, especially with the large vines covering the floor. His eyes still hadn't adjusted to the hallway. He stayed focused on Lalamon, leading the way with the flashlight. Yoshi brought up the rear, keeping the brothers upright through their frequent stumbles.

His mind struggled just as much. After getting caught in the middle of the battle between MagnaAngemon and Millenniumon, everything flashed white before he lost consciousness. He didn't know how long he was out, nor did he recall dreaming. It was an indefinite emptiness before waking up to find himself here in front of Yoshi. Whoever she was.

More light down the hall suggested another chamber. When they reached it, the vines along the floor led to the monstrosity in the center of the room. It was deflecting attacks from Rapidmon, but its own targets were the three humans huddled behind the nearby Guardromon. Renamon struggled to defend them.

"Impossible!" Algomon shouted. The vines below them sprang to life and tried to grab Matt and TK. Yoshi hacked Matt free with her machete, but TK was hoisted by his ankle.

"Hold this," Yoshi handed her blade to Matt and pulled out her digivice. "DNA Charge! Overdrive!" Lalamon digivolved to Rosemon and slashed TK free.

"You can warp digivolve?" Matt was in awe as he returned Yoshi's machete.

"Yoshi! Get over here!" Henry shouted. He, Kazu and Rika were still huddled behind Guardromon. With Rosemon offering cover, Yoshi dragged Matt and TK to them.

"The hell?" Kazu asked. "Who are your friends?" He squinted for a moment as he looked over Matt and TK. His eyes then burst open. "Dude, no way!"

"One thing at a time," Yoshi said. "What the hell did you guys run into?!"

"Algomon," Henry replied, ducking as Guardromon almost missed intercepting a vine meant for him. "Might be a god. Might have created the world. Definitely doesn't like humans."

"This is the guy that put us to sleep," TK said.

"How do you..." Yoshi started to ask, but then she shook her head. "Never mind! If he's going after you guys, why aren't you bio-merging?"

"MegaGargomon's less mobile," Henry answered. "We'd never get a shot off. He'd catch us in a second. Ask Rika what that feels like." Rika tried sitting up, but struggled. Kazu forced her down.

Another vine slapped TK's shoulder. Renamon caught it before it did worse. "You might have to give it a try," Yoshi said. "There's too many targets back here and not enough protection."

"Well Rika's in no condition to bio-merge. That would be-"

Rika waved him off. "Whatever. Better than being a sitting duck here. Renamon can carry the load." She clutched her D-Power. "I'm up for it if you are."

"This is crazy..." Henry helped her to her feet. In unison, they shouted, "Bio-Merge Activate!"

MegaGargomon took up almost the entire height of the chamber. Sakuyamon was a little slower and a little less stable than usual. They joined the fight anyway.

Matt and TK saw the whole thing. Yoshi smirked at their hanging jaws. "Yeah, no kidding."

With Henry and Rika gone, she pushed Matt and TK closer to Guardromon to provide more cover. Kazu was waiting for them. "So we finally get to meet Matt and TK, huh? I'm a big fan."

"Wait?" TK said. "You know us?"

"You two are legends!" Kazu grinned at Matt. "I totally downloaded your single."

Matt was stunned, but shook it off and pointed to MegaGargomon. "Did those two just fuse with their Digimon?"

"Guys, we'll fill you in on everything later, but right now we need to stay focused," Yoshi barked.

"Humans and Digimon combining?!" Algomon roared. "What abomination is this?"

Kazu shook his head. "Man, this guy brings back memories."

"At least he's attacking them more," Yoshi said, watching as Sakuyamon struggled to evade pursuing vines, relying on Rosemon's assistance. "Not that that's a good thing."

"Or absolute." Kazu pointed to an encroaching vine behind Yoshi. She turned around and hacked it away.

A heavier attack missed Rosemon and slammed into Guardromon. He absorbed it, but everyone behind him was shaken. TK cowered. "I know you've got your hands full, but any idea where Patamon and Gabumon are?"

Yoshi froze. In the excitement of rescuing Matt and TK, she hadn't considered their partners. She even struggled to recall what Patamon looked like. "Patamon... is he like a flying guinea pig?"

TK recoiled at the description. Kazu nodded, locking eyes with Yoshi. "And you know what Gabumon looks like."

Yoshi frowned. "Yeah..." She turned to the ramp leading back up. "Kazu, you've got Rosemon. Guys, follow me."

Kazu spun around and shouted to Rosemon as Yoshi ran to the ramp. She stopped to make sure Matt and TK were following.

They were, but slower. "We're not taking a Digimon?" Matt asked. "What if we get attacked?"

Yoshi flashed her machete. "Then you'll see how we handle things on the patrol team."

* * *

Jeri Katou watched the moons reflecting in the river as she soaked her feet. She sensed Agumon watching her. It would have made her nervous, but she was already too anxious for that sort of discomfort to matter.

Koichi joined her, kneeling on the riverbank next to her. "Why is Agumon here?" he whispered.

She continued to face forward. "Tai caught me trying to leave."

"Should have used the back door like me."

"Agumon? Can you give us a moment?"

Agumon stared back, eyes narrowing. He knew how fishy it looked. Only when she looked back at him and he could see the desperate look in her eyes did he reply, "Okay. I'll just be down the path a bit. Yell if you need me."

The moment he was out of sight, Jeri took Koichi's chin and pulled him in for a deep kiss. He relished it, closing his eyes, but then pulled away and asked, "What's going on? We never do this when Takato's here."

"Rika knows," she said.

Koichi leaned back, took a deep breath, and replied, "What did she say? I mean, Tommy and Mimi kept quiet, but-"

"She won't." Jeri's lip quivered. "She won't lie to Takato. She gave me until she got back from patrol to take care of it." Her held fell into his chest. "I don't know what to do."

He wrapped his arms around her. His voice started to crack. "There's only one thing we can do."

"I can't lie to Rika."

"Jeri..." He forced her to look at him. "It has to stop."

"We can't." Her eyes watered. "I love you. I need you. I never felt good about myself until I met you. I can't do this without you."

He pulled her in closer. "But Jeri... it's not fair to anybody. It's not fair to him... it's not fair to me either. I want to be with you for real. I want to eat with you and dance with you. I want to say, 'yes I have a girlfriend and her name is Jeri and she's wonderful.' I don't want this to be a secret."

She shook her head. "But that would mean I have to choose. And-"

"And you can't choose," Koichi answered. He looked her in the eyes. The tears were already flowing. "You still love Takato. I saw it at the dance. As much as you love me, it's not enough to leave him."

"Koichi... I still..."

"That's why I have to walk away."

"No..."

He sniffed back a few tears of his own. "If you can't decide, then I'm not going to make you."

"Koichi, no... I need you. And if that means I have to give up Takato..." She paused. She wanted to say it. She was desperate to say it. She couldn't get it out.

To Koichi, it didn't matter. "It's too late. All of your friends support him. You leave him... you leave all of them too. I won't let you do that. It's... better this way."

He couldn't stop himself from crying any longer as Jeri drove her head into his chest, her head shaking the whole time. "But what am I supposed to do without you? You understand me better than anybody else."

"You're strong, Jeri," he said between sobs. "You can do it. I believe in you."

She pulled away and looked up at him, biting her lip. "What about you? Will you be okay?"

Koichi's mouth fell open. He choked up. "No. I'm not okay. You are the best thing that's happened in my life. Nobody, not even my brother, understands what I went through the way you do. Leaving you is the hardest thing I've ever had to do."

"Then don't! Koichi, we'll find a way!"

"No. I don't want you to lose everything because of me." He stood up, still holding her hands. "This is how it has to be. It always ends the same." He let go and backed away. "He's the hero... I'm the sacrifice."

Koichi ran off into the darkness before she could chase after him. She could only lie on the ground, wailing alone. At some point, Agumon checked up on her. He set a claw on her back, tried to pull her into an embrace... anything to offer some comfort. But he didn't know why she was grieving, and there was nothing he could do to help.

* * *

Kazu Shioda was stuck trying to do three things at once. He still had to command Guardromon, his only shield against attacks his way. He had to keep an eye out for anything that tried to creep around Guardromon in order to dodge them and flag somebody to take it out. As the only human remaining, he was still an attractive target for Algomon. On top of all that, with Yoshi gone, he was now acting as Rosemon's partner. The entire patrol team was trained to switch partners, but he was too overwhelmed to be much help. He needed a third pair of eyes to offer Rosemon a second.

While the bio-merge did protect Henry and Rika, the concerns about their effectiveness proved true. MegaGargomon could barely maneuver and he wrestled with Algomon's vines constantly. He fought off several shocks, but struggled to turn around in time to fire his heavy guns. Sakuyamon was a mess. Rika was in no condition to fight, hampering her Mega form and slowing their reaction time. They were forced to rely on their protective spells and Rosemon's assistance to stay upright.

Rosemon was the only legitimate threat they had, and even she had no luck. Her partner was gone, she was forced to keep one eye on Sakuyamon, and her plant-based attacks didn't do much against someone who seemed to control flora at will.

As scary as it was, Kazu felt frustrated more than anything. He was confident in his ability to keep himself and Rosemon upright, but he struggled to come up with some way to turn the tide. With three Megas in play, they surely had all the firepower they needed. But Algomon was relentless and could attack from anywhere, making it hard for anyone to feel secure enough to launch an attack massive enough to destroy him. It infuriated Kazu that they couldn't beat him.

He would never admit it, but if Algomon was really the one responsible for holding Matt and TK captive, it was another reason to want to punish him. He and Takato and Kenta never really talked about it with anybody, but one of the only reasons they were able to cope with getting pulled into this world was their faith in Tai's team. The digidestined went to great lengths to take care of the tamers in the early days, at the expense of their search for their friends. Kazu wanted to repay them. More importantly, he wanted Algomon to understand how unforgivable a crime it was to bring so much pain to his childhood heroes.

This anger began to occupy his thoughts. He knew this was dangerous; it was hard enough to focus on his duties. But it also motivated him. He wanted to do more. He wanted to make the difference. As strong as Henry and Rika were, they were tied up. Kazu felt like this could be his moment, but as he felt a sensation that confirmed this, he froze.

Suddenly, Kazu had a move. It would have offered one clear attack. It also would have exposed him, the only remaining human in the chamber. If it didn't work, he would be electrocuted, asleep, or worse. He clenched a fist. Those fears and doubts had no place in battle. If he was being afforded the opportunity, he was going to use it. He took a deep breath and pulled the blue card out of his pocket.

"Digi-Modify!" he shouted. "Matrix Digivolution Activate!"

"What are you doing?!" Sakuyamon shouted as the stout and sturdy Guardromon digivolved to the taller, narrower Andromon. Kazu stood beside him, totally unprotected.

"Gatling Attack!" Andromon fired off a round of missiles at Algomon's face. They all connected, Algomon screamed and recoiled, but it didn't finish the job. Algomon stared down Kazu, shooting six vines his way.

"Gargo Missile!" Thankfully, the attack allowed MegaGargomon to get free and fire his massive torpedoes. They collided moments before the vines reached Kazu, incinerating Algomon's protective shell. He fell to the ground writhing as the rest of his body burned.

"What have you done?!" he cried. "How could you destroy me?!"

"You made it pretty easy for us," MegaGargomon answered.

Algomon seethed. "Destroying a creator will usher in a new age of chaos. You shall never be sated until I am reborn. When I am... I assure you my vengeance will not be merciful. My recent carnage will look pale compared to what I will unleash-"

Rosemon speared him in the face, finally killing him. "That's enough out of you."

The bio-merges split apart. Henry cringed as Algomon's data, all of it pitch black, scattered into the air. "You know, Rosemon, we get a lot of good information when they ramble as they're dying."

Rika groaned as Renamon supported her. "Command's gonna expect us to remember all that crap, aren't they?"

* * *

Marcus Damon punched Devimon in the stomach, ducking under the reach of the enemy's monster arms and bouncing backward. He didn't want to admit he was wearing down, but fighting two Champion Digimon for this long took a lot out of both him and RizeGreymon. At no point did he feel like Devimon and BlackGarurumon had any sort of advantage, nor did he have the passion needed to evolve RizeGreymon further. Still, this battle was dragging on and his patience was wearing thin.

He knew it had to end, and he knew he'd have to start taking chances. After his partner landed a hit against BlackGarurumon, Marcus ordered RizeGreymon behind him and charged after Devimon, arcing his route to build more momentum for his fists. Devimon stood up and prepared to receive the punch with his elongated arms.

"Howling Blaster!" Instead, BlackGarurumon attacked Marcus... just as the ultimate fighter predicted. By the time the flame arrived, Marcus had used his momentum to drop into a slide instead of throw a punch. His alternate angle put Devimon right in the path of the attack and dropped him.

"Trident Revolver!" From a distance RizeGreymon had an easy shot on BlackGarurumon.

Both enemies were down, but instead of staying down or even dying, the dark fog shrouded them again. Marcus popped to his feet, wiping sweat from his forehead. He wasn't afraid of two Champions, but if they digivolved again? He wasn't prepared for that possibility.

"Boss, what do we do?" RizeGreymon cried.

Marcus looked at the opponents, both on opposite sides of the room. They needed to be hit hard and immediately. He worked out the angles, stood in the middle of the room, and nodded at RizeGreymon. "Right here on three."

"You sure, Boss?"

He folded his arms, staring his partner in the eyes. "Three..."

"Marcus, no!" Yoshi called from the hallway. He knew why. Of course this was stupid.

"Trust us! Two!" He saw RizeGreymon charge his attack. "One!" Exactly a second later, he dropped to the ground and covered his head.

"Rising Destroyer!" Cannons on both sides of RizeGreymon's wings unleashed a barrage that curled sideways and met where Marcus had been standing. They flew over his head and crossed paths. One set hit BlackGarurumon. The other hit Devimon. The black shrouds gave way to clouds of smoke.

Marcus checked to make sure both targets were hit, then jumped to his feet, folded his arms, spun around and smirked at Yoshi. "How'd you like that?"

It was the first time he saw that Yoshi wasn't alone. The two boys with her stared anxiously at each of the smoke clouds. Yoshi carried that same worried look, but directed at Marcus. Her hand covered her mouth.

The smoke cleared away. One cloud revealed Patamon. The other had Gabumon. Neither were moving.

Yoshi gulped. "No... no no no no no..." Specks of data floated out of them all the same. No words were going to stop the process.

Matt staggered halfway to Gabumon, stopped, fell to his knees and crawled the rest of the way.

TK's eyes darted between Patamon and Marcus. Before the horror could sink in, he was consumed with one sight- that smirk. It was gone now as Marcus was coming to realize what had happened. It didn't matter. TK's instincts took over and with a primal scream, he charged forward. All his energy went into his fist as it struck this stranger across the face. Marcus wasn't ready and the punch sent him spinning and crashing to the ground. TK stood over him, seething.

"TK...?" The faint voice of Patamon made him stop. He turned back around, all the anger gone as he scooped his dying partner into his arms.

"Patamon... no... " He cradled him, tears already pouring out.

"TK..." Patamon opened his eyes long enough to see his partner. He managed a faint smile. "It's nice to finally see you again..." His eyes closed, this time for good.

Yoshi cautiously approached TK, herself in tears. She put a hand on his back as he nuzzled up against Patamon for the few moments that were left. She pulled him in closer as the rest of the Digimon glowed and dissipated. Yoshi clutched him tight as he screamed.

Across the room, Matt was still in shock as he held Gabumon in his lap. The Digimon wheezed, staring into the air, finally mumbling, "Welcome back."

Matt pulled his partner in, teeth clenched. "No... please..."

The rest of the team ran in. "Everything good here?" Henry asked, only to quickly realize it wasn't. He saw the dying partners and looked away.

"What?" Kazu hadn't gotten into the chamber yet. His first glimpse was Gabumon going. "Aw, crap."

"You were right. Corruption." Henry slammed his fist against the wall.

Kazu slowly approached Matt. He bent down, he bit his lip, and he put his hand on his shoulder. All he could muster was, "Dude, I'm so sorry." Matt fell forward, huddling around the forming digi-egg. Kazu caught him. Matt's head fell into his chest. The tamer just held him, struggling not to cry himself.

"Henry!" Yoshi called, careful not to disrupt TK's mourning. "Go outside and get in touch with Command. They won't pick us up in here. We need a ride home- now."

Henry nodded slowly. "Hope they're awake. It's after hours."

Yoshi frowned. "Wake them up. Code purple."

He winced, but he understood. Each digivice had differing communication abilities, methods and frequencies, which normally made them unreliable. They had engineered a method to send a coded alert guaranteed to reach to every digivice in range, flashing a single chosen color on the screen. Purple meant the death of someone's partner Digimon. Henry never needed to use it before.

All the same, he accepted it and headed to the exit. Terriermon jumped on his shoulder. Henry rubbed the back of his partner's head. His lip quivered.

With Yoshi holding TK and Kazu attempting to console Matt, Rika approached Marcus. She was shaken by everything too, but the sight of the team captain, still sprawled out on the floor, was almost as shocking.

"What happened to you?" she asked.

Yoshi coughed, glancing down at TK. "Reacted a bit strongly." She stroked TK's head.

Agumon was already shaking his shoulder. "C'mon boss... get up..."

Rika bent down next to Agumon. "Seriously." She stole a quick look at TK. "He couldn't have hit you that hard. Are you letting someone his size take you down?"

But Marcus's eyes were open and blinking. He was fully conscious. He just wasn't moving.

"Boss..." Agumon's concern was growing. "Boss... don't do this! Not now!"

"Do what?" His worry was spreading to Rika. "What is it?" She shook his other shoulder. "Marcus! Dammit, Gogglehead, get up!"

Marcus did, sitting upright with help from Agumon and Rika. But his face was pale and the usual fire in his eyes was gone. He looked at Matt and TK and their grief. For a moment, he looked like he would throw up.

His head fell back against the stone floor, eyes cast to the ceiling. Voice reduced to a quiet whimper, he said, "What have I done?"

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 14: "Half A Heart"**  
Matt and TK are overwhelmed with their sudden integration into the castle and the past the other digidestined had long since overcome. Rika tries to help Marcus battle his remorse. Sora and Yolei have to decide whether to tell Matt and Henry about Tai.

" _You're right. I can't forgive you right now."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** I swear to God I wrote this episode in December before any of the previews for upcoming tri. movies came out. At least it didn't end with "goodbye, TK."

The first scene's jokes about the 02 kids charging into a situation blind are obviously references to tri. Now it's entirely possible they weren't responsible for this mess or they won't remember it in the end. If that ends up being the case, we'll just say they got into some trouble in the preceding years here in the Digital World and needed rescuing again. The nice thing about having so much time between their arrival and the current story is there's plenty of room to shift around anything inconvenient that pops up in tri. Somewhere along the line Izzy must have gotten over that crush on Mimi...

At the same time, remember that while the timeline dictates that the Adventure kids were pulled in somewhere before or during the second tri. movie, the 02 kids entered several years later. While their desire to avoid spoilers allows us to not worry about hard details, they still carry the weight of whatever happened. This adds some depth to the Tai/Yolei affair that obviously wasn't possible when episode 4 was first written/posted last year.

It's an easy detail to miss, but there's about a four-week gap between the last episode and this one- by far the longest between two episodes so far. It's now mid-September, about two months after the Fusion Fighters arrived in July.

To her, Yoshi's introduction to Matt is a matter of personal and squad pride. It's also my way to give a shout to both an unheralded character and her unheralded season being responsible for rescuing the two kids you've been waiting the whole story to see. And yes, unlike the lip service to the Japanese names in season one, Yoshi's full name really is Yoshino in the dub, and both get used depending on the situation.

Kazu's line about downloading Matt's single isn't some weird dimensional voodoo where the Teenage Wolves are real. It's Kazu doing what we all do- grabbing Digimon music off the internet. Let's not muddle over whether it's I Turn Around or Tobira. I downloaded both.

Big as Guardromon's evolution was, I'm being deliberately vague on whether it's the first time it's happened in this world. We're going for dramatic effect, but it's hard to believe that in all the years he's been here, Kazu has never needed to evolve Guardromon to Ultimate.

MliGuUjv-4s  
-


	15. 14- Half A Heart

**Author's Note**  
So it ended up being an extra month, but for good reason! I got involved with the Digimon Bang on Tumblr, a challenge where writers create a new story and artists are assigned to draw for them. So look for Resumption later this summer- the story of the 02 kids re-adjusting to normal life after being away due to the events of tri. Anyway, got another pair re-adjusting to life here... once again, I'll update every other week through episode 19.

 **Neverworld**

 _Anyone with half a heart would help me out_  
 _before they ever let the other half find out._  
 _But if you could see how far I've let you down,_  
 _anyone with half a heart would let me drown._  
 _\- Barenaked Ladies, "Half A Heart"_

 **Episode 14**

TK Takaishi never thought he would have to suffer the pain of carrying his partner's digiegg for a second time. Saving Patamon was the only reason TK jumped into danger in the first place. It was the only reason Matt ran in after him. It was the only reason they ended up where they did. After everything they sacrificed, the result was still the same.

Worse yet, he was still tallying how much they had given up. He and Matt recognized the hill they were now outside. They were still in this same accursed Digital World after however long it had been since their capture. It was a different landscape now. There were multiple moons and odd wrinkles in the sky that had never been there before. He never remembered nights being this calm; he still recalled harrowing overnight guard shifts. The biggest change was the presence of the five strangers that had rescued them.

Other than Yoshi, TK had already forgotten their names. His mind was still on Patamon when the introductions came. Even if he didn't know who they were, he could tell they sympathized with him and his brother. They were shaken, uncertain, and hovered just a little closer to their Digimon than usual. They grasped for the right thing to say, as if it existed. Nothing helped, but at least TK could respect that they were trying.

Their leader said nothing. He refused to make eye contact with the brothers. That was all right with TK. Someone who could commit such a reckless, showy killing of infected Digimon, no matter if they were anyone's partners, was not a leader. Rather than attempt to say anything to Matt and TK, he lingered behind the rest of the group and now parked himself on the grass waiting for the shuttle back to base. Only his Agumon attempted to interact with him. The thought of this guy having an Agumon partner sickened TK.

The silhouette of Imperialdramon appeared in front of a moon- the first sign of their ride. His form grew bigger and landed in the field at the base of the crag. Ken stayed on, but Davis hopped off and motioned for everyone to jump aboard. The patrol team did so wordlessly. As Matt walked past, Davis patted his shoulder. Matt nodded before boarding.

TK lingered for a moment, staring at Davis. Davis saw it and approached him. With a gulp, TK said, "You're alive."

"So are you," Davis replied. He stepped forward and gave TK a big hug. He held it for a moment, biting his lip. "Man, where the hell were you?"

It was the first time since waking up that TK smiled. "Where was I? Where were you? And why are you older?"

"Sorry pal, spoilers." Davis pulled back. Now he was frowning. "I already got into trouble once with that. C'mon, let's go home."

"What's home?" TK followed Davis back to Imperialdramon and boarded.

"It's a lot better than aimless wandering, I'll tell you that," said Henry.

TK began to approach Ken, ready to receive the same welcome, but he already had someone in his arms. Rika had nuzzled into Ken's chest, her whole body shaking. Ken did everything he could to soothe her.

"I wasn't ready to see that happen again," she mumbled. Ken kissed the top of her head. He caught sight of TK and nodded respectfully.

"You two seem close," said TK.

Ken looked down at Rika, a faint smile appearing. "Yes. We are."

TK narrowed an eye at them before Davis patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Yolei's with Henry now. It's all cool."

It didn't change TK's expression. He didn't know how long he had been gone, but he must have missed a lot. "What do you mean? And what about-"

"Cody's with my sister," Henry obliged. TK's mouth fell open. He looked at Rika, then back to Henry, then found the third tamer walking up to him.

"Don't look at me, man," said Kazu, slapping TK's shoulder. "Kari's all yours!"

"Speaking of which!" Davis announced. He gave Imperialdramon the order to take off and held up his D-Terminal. "Just heard back. I know it's late but here's how it'll work. TK and Matt? We're dropping you off at the medical facility. Joe will look you over, take care of those eggs, and make sure you rest up."

He turned to the tamers. "You five go straight upstairs. We want a debriefing from all of you. No bathroom or snack breaks. Sounds like you guys went through hell and we want to know everything."

Davis had one final instruction. "And Ken?" His DNA partner was holding Rika so tightly he was alarmed by the intrusion. Despite the barking, Davis formed a wide smile. "You better take a cold shower. You two are making it hot in here!" Rika pulled back as both her face and Ken's turned red.

* * *

Jeri Katou lied on her bed, curled up and clutching a pillow between her arms and legs. She was already destined for a miserable, sleepless night after losing Koichi. She was still awake when her digivice buzzed violently. Like everybody else in the castle, she knew what purple meant. She prayed it wasn't one of her friends, chiding herself for her selfishness the entire time.

At some point, Takato knocked on her door and asked if she was okay. Jeri lied and said she was. She was still grieving the loss of Koichi as much as the loss of someone's Digimon, which meant she couldn't let Takato help. He persisted a little, but she insisted she was fine and just wanted to sleep it off. Only after he left did she realize he was probably just as worried as she was. It made her feel even worse.

She didn't know what time the door opened, but it had to have been at least an hour after the code purple. Rika entered, shut the door, and leaned against it. Jeri flipped the light on and stared back at her.

"We saved Matt and TK," Rika said, choked up. "We couldn't save Gabumon or Patamon."

Jeri nodded. Part of her was glad it wasn't her friends. Part of her was frustrated by all the added work two new bodies meant for her. Again, she hated herself for being selfish.

Rika changed into her pajamas, continuing to explain. "Algomon must have corrupted them. They were attacking Marcus and Agumon killed them."

"Oh no..."

"The look on his face... I've never seen it before. He's beating himself up over it and..."

"You're worried about him."

Rika gritted her teeth. Even in these dire moments, she struggled to admit it. "Yeah," she muttered. Her voice raised as her rant continued, "And then we have to go back here and explain everything we went through. Remembering all the nonsense that guy went on about. I'm just... tired."

"Koichi and I are done," Jeri said. Her voice was low but it froze Rika all the same. Rika stopped, turned, and sat on Jeri's bed. "I told him what you said and... he left. Broke my heart." Jeri squeezed her pillow tighter. "And I broke his."

Rika pulled Jeri in, wrapping her arms around her roommate's head. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

She held Jeri there, letting the girl in her arms sob to her heart's content. It began to overwhelm Rika. Finally, she relented and gave herself permission to cry.

* * *

Tai Kamiya woke up next to Sora for what he was sure was the last time. She had fallen asleep before he could return with answers about the code purple. Now it was morning and they had no choice but to face reality. Matt's return was unquestionably a good thing, something Tai fought hard for since he disappeared. He still couldn't help but feel like he was losing something.

As he was forced to lead with Gabumon and Patamon's death, the news was somber for Sora. She sat on the side of the bed, hands folded in her lap. "Did you see them?"

Tai nodded. "Kari and I snuck into Medical after Joe went to bed. They were asleep but... yeah." He sighed. "I thought I didn't care how we got them back as long as we did, but... I can't think of how it could be any worse for them."

"It's up to us to get them through it. I'm sure we will."

Tai slumped. "I guess that's it then? For us, I mean."

Sora looked at him, frowning. She rubbed his back. "I guess you were right. I shouldn't have lost faith. But this is how it-"

"I know, I know!" He heaved a sigh. "I just don't know if I'm ready for it to end this quickly. It was everything I wanted. And I needed it more than I realized."

"Tai, I meant everything I said last night. I will always be with you. If you need to talk to someone, and you do more often than you think, find me. Nothing I do is more important."

He needed a moment to appreciate her words, but he nodded. Putting a hand on her lap, Tai said, "Can I ask you for two things?"

"Of course."

"Don't regret what happened between us." Tai shook his head. "I'm sure he's going to sock me in the face the moment he finds out, but I don't want to go on thinking we made a mistake. I don't want you to forget how much we needed each other."

Sora frowned, but she nodded. "I'll try. I don't know how easy that will be. I don't even know if I can tell him. I just hope he understands." What's the second thing?"

He kissed her one last time, holding it for as long as she could bare. She pulled away after a few seconds. Already she was uncomfortable.

Tai stood up and smiled. "Let's go say hi to Matt."

* * *

Joe Kido knew he was in for a long day, but he was excited for it. Nobody was hurt, so facilitating Matt and TK's integration to the castle was a pleasure compared to fixing people. He wasn't sure who had found out about their arrival and wanted to ensure they got a proper rest (preferably one that allowed him to track vital signs) before reuniting them with their teammates and introducing them to everybody else.

To make sure they weren't disturbed, he insisted on a night watch. Ryo was not at all happy when Joe arrived in the morning. The tamer's eyes were heavy and he slumped over in his chair. Joe raised an eyebrow. "You know I would have let you grab a book."

Ryo glared back. "Nice of you to tell me now. Can I go to bed?"

"No way. I don't want everyone pouring in at once to overwhelm these guys." Joe shuffled the sets of clothes in his arms to unlock the door to his office. "Did anyone come by?"

"Just Tai and Kari. Don't think they woke them up."

Joe narrowed his eyes. When he had said "don't let anyone in," that included Tai and Kari. The medical facility was the one place where he outranked officers.

"I was going to ask if you needed to use the bathroom, but..." Joe opened the door and walked inside, slamming it shut before finishing his sentence.

His first task was to check on the digieggs. Once they were stable, he'd transfer them to the habitat for the manual labor part. To his relief, they were right on track. Next, he poked his head into Matt's room.

Matt sat on his bed, looking around at all the equipment. Joe entered and dropped off the sets of clothes. "Found some new clothes for you. Hopefully Christopher's taste is good enough for you for now."

"How did you get all this?" Matt asked, holding up the monitoring device clipped to his finger.

Joe removed it. "The river provides. We have a terminal that lets us order basically what we want. Floats down the river a few days later. We don't understand how it works, but it keeps us pretty comfortable.

TK entered the room and saw the other set of clothes. "Are those for me?"

"Yeah." Joe tried to ignore TK removing sensitive medical equipment from his person. "They're Cody's. Try not to think about that."

He followed TK out to let the two change. "So what's the plan?" Matt asked through the curtain.

"We're going to let our guys in one at a time. This is..." Joe looked down. "This is going to be emotional. Everyone should feel like they got their moment with you."

"Matt, keep it clean when Sora gets here," TK joked.

"Yes, please," Joe said. "But once they're through, we'll introduce you to all the new teams in groups and show you around the castle." He sighed. "A lot's changed in nine years."

Both Matt and TK poked their heads out of the curtains and cried, "Nine years?!"

Joe cringed. "Guess Davis and Ken didn't mention that."

Matt clutched the curtain rod to support himself. "I figured it was more than a couple days but-"

A loud crash from the front door forced Joe to leave them. He found Tai, Izzy, Kari, Sora, Mimi and Ryo crumpled in a pile on the floor.

Mimi pulled herself out first, got to her feet and saw Matt and TK standing outside their rooms. Tears suddenly streaming, she ran and jumped into Matt's arms. She was crying too much to actually say anything, but Matt embraced her all the same. He looked back at the other four. They were never going to be as dramatic about it as Mimi, but from the looks of their eyes he knew they felt the same way.

TK saw Mimi's eyes; through her tears they compelled him to join. He wrapped one arm around her, the other around his brother, and closed his eyes. He didn't see Sora join him. Or Tai. Or Kari. Or Izzy.

Joe watched the whole thing. "What happened to not letting people in?" he asked Ryo, still gathering himself up.

"Have you ever figured out a way to say no to Mimi?" Joe narrowed his eyes at the tamer, who only added, "They're missing one." Ryo walked outside without another word.

With a sigh, Joe smiled and joined them. After nine years, they were finally together again. For a moment, that was all that mattered.

Nobody wanted to be the first to speak, nor was anyone going to pull away. Matt did only when he realized this, ducking under the mass of arms and backing into the wall. He stared back at the other seven, now slowly separating as the moment passed. He felt unsteady, his shaking hands clutching the scale against the wall. All the tears in everyone else's eyes made him realize they were trickling down his too. His breathing got heavier.

"It's okay," Sora said, walking up to him slowly. She wrapped her arms around him; her head found that place between his neck and his shoulder that she had nestled into so many times before. It was instinctive for them, as was the way he cradled her head and put a hand between her shoulder blades. "It's over," she whispered, pulling her head back just enough to kiss him.

When he pulled away, they stared at each other. His eyes narrowed only slightly, but enough for her to ask, "What?"

He shook his head. "I..." he blinked. "Some other time, okay?"

She frowned. "Promise you'll tell me?"

"...yeah."

While Sora had Matt all to herself, everybody else shared TK. He got more hugs from Mimi and Tai, and a firm handshake from Izzy. There was only one left who hadn't properly greeted TK, and she stood in front of him. He smiled at her and simply said, "Hi, Kari."

She took a step towards him and started to reach out, but then she froze. A neutral smile stayed painted on her face, but she didn't move. Kari took a deep breath, stood up straight, did a simple bow and replied, "Nice to see you, TK."

He didn't drop his smile, but he tilted his head, one eyebrow narrowing. She nodded at him again, backed away, then ran out the door.

Kari got halfway over the bridge before Izzy chased after her. He caught up in the main building, grabbed her hand and said, "I thought you weren't going to think about all that."

She pulled him into a corner, then drove her head into his chest. "I couldn't. It's all I could think about. I'm terrible."

Izzy rubbed her back. "Kari, I know it's strange, but you have to push that out. What our other selves did back home can't matter. He's going through a lot right now. He needs you."

"I know, but I don't think I can be the friend he should have right now."

He put his hands on his shoulders and looked down at her. "You should at least try. Please?"

She nodded and replied, "All right." Kari stood on her toes and kissed him.

* * *

Rika Nonaka needed fresh air and some peace and quiet. She had already met Matt and TK and therefore felt no guilt hovering in the back while the other tamers eagerly introduced themselves. There was too much on her mind to make nice with the new kids. A walk with Ken and their partners sounded perfect.

She and Renamon waited at the castle gates, growing impatient as Ken got clearance to leave from Command. As half of the primary transport team, he could never stray too far. Rika shared the sources of her stress with Renamon- being party to another death, Algomon's haunting words, being electrocuted. It all wore her down. Renamon offered some comfort, but she wanted to get out with Ken for a while to feel like she truly escaped it. There was also the possibility they would kiss and stuff... Rika was sort of interested in seeing how that would go.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Marcus's Agumon leaving the castle with a tray of food and sneaking around the back. Rika told Renamon to wait and hold Ken when he arrived, and chased after him.

"Agumon!"

The Digimon froze, almost dropping the tray. "It's not for me, I swear!" he shouted.

Rika caught up and asked, "How's he doing?"

"Oh..." Agumon shook his head. "It's pretty bad." He motioned for her to follow him around to a side wall. Marcus was sitting against it, staring at the grass. "He's been like that for an hour," Agumon whispered.

With a sneer, Rika kneeled next to him. "What the hell, Marcus? Are you still beating yourself up? Nobody's blaming you."

"Those two do," Marcus muttered. "At least pint-size does. Nobody else matters."

Rika rolled her eyes. "So he punched you. Whatever. He'll get over it."

"You wouldn't understand. You aren't a man."

She glared at him. "I bet I can hit you a lot harder than TK did."

Marcus's head snapped in her direction. "No! You can't! That's the problem!"

Rika looked at Agumon and raised an eyebrow. Agumon nodded gravely. Whatever was going on, Marcus was completely serious.

"Have you ever thrown a real punch? One you put your entire soul into?"

As much as she wanted to ridicule him for the question, the dire look in his eyes stopped her. All she said was "no."

"You can learn everything you need to know about a man by the way he punches. That kid... he's so scrawny... so weak from everything he went through... and he laid me out." Marcus winced. "There's way more pain there than any kid should have. And he passed it all to me."

Rika scoffed. "Well sure, but none of us had it easy. We all went through-"

"It wasn't the first time he had to watch his partner die." Marcus shuddered.

Her eyes widened. "It... wasn't? You could tell that just from a punch?"

Marcus nodded. "And I'm responsible for that pain. Don't give me all that crap about them being corrupted. I could have held back. But no, I just wanted to end it. I was more worried about me and Agumon than them."

Rika wanted to disagree. She wanted to remind him that none of them suspected anything. But it wasn't true; Kazu had been suspicious and Yoshi pieced it together.

"I failed my part of the mission," Marcus said. "And two partner Digimon are dead because of me. I don't deserve to call myself a leader."

"Don't say that! Stop moping around! You're really scaring me, Gogglehead."

"Gogglehead..." Marcus smirked, pulling off the goggles around his neck. "I never got the obsession over these things, but if Takato says they're important, then they have to mean something." He handed them to Rika. "And it means I don't deserve to wear them."

Rika took them. Then she almost smacked him with them. "So you screwed up! Whatever! Who here hasn't? It doesn't change anything! We need you!"

He wrapped his arms around his knees. "You need a fighter, not a murderer."

From behind her, Ken called out Rika's name. She turned around as he said, "There you are. I'm ready when you are."

She popped up and frowned, then marched past him. "Gonna have to pass."

"But this was your idea."

Rika stopped, an angry look on her face. "We need to fix something first. Come on."

Before he followed her back inside, Ken looked at Marcus and frowned. This was obviously about him. Of course Ken wasn't going to be happy about it.

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa was happy to take a break from lunch service in the middle of such an emotional day. Matt and TK were still being introduced to the other teams in the castle, so it would be a while before she could spend any more time with them. She just wanted to talk about it, so she dropped what she was doing the moment she saw Sora sit down.

The digidestined of love wasn't glowing the way Mimi would have expected. She was apprehensive, and Mimi had a good idea why: "So, it looks like we're back to the age-old question- Matt or Tai?"

Sora sighed, shaking her head. "I'm not going to bite. It's Matt. Tai and I already talked about it. I'm not feeding into your imaginary love triangle fantasies."

"It's not imaginary." Mimi smirked. "You have to admit you and Tai worked."

A small blush appeared on Sora's face, but she held firm. "Maybe, but it's not fair to Matt. I don't think he realizes how long it's been. Whatever he's going through, it wouldn't be right to leave him like that."

With a sigh, Sora added, "I mean, yeah I was surprised how well it worked with Tai, but he knows how I feel. I just hope he's not too upset." She caught Mimi's smile growing and blurted, "Stop that!"

"Hey guys." Now Yolei joined them. Her sigh was one of exasperation. "Wow, I didn't think seeing them again would be that intense. And I forgot how adorable TK was at that age... he looks so young."

"Don't give Sora any ideas." Mimi winked. "She has her hands full with two guys."

"My hands are full with one!" Sora insisted. Quieter, she added, "I'm worried about Matt. Something didn't seem right about him."

"Well, of course not," Yolei said. "It's been how many years? You probably don't picture him the same way. You can't expect him to be exactly the way you remember."

Mimi frowned. "Or even if he is, if all this time has passed for us but not him, it's going to be pretty strange. You do have your work cut out for you."

Sora looked down at her tray. "I don't know if I should tell him I was with Tai. I'm afraid he'd sock him in the face or something."

"Are you kidding? You have to!" Yolei exclaimed. "He'll understand that you're not going to wait for him to come back."

"But I did! Or at least I tried to!"

"But Yolei's right," said Mimi. "You'd better fess up before he finds out. Knowing you three, he'll figure it out pretty quick."

"Okay, so you both think I should be honest?" Both of Sora's companions nodded. She narrowed her eyes at Yolei. "Fine- I'll tell Matt about Tai if you tell Henry about Tai."

"What?!" Yolei cried.

"Yolei?!" Mimi stood up and leaned forward, hands on the table. "So you're the one?!"

Yolei cringed. "Um... yeah... neither of us wanted that getting out so I never told anybody. Sora kinda got it out of me."

"Time out!" Mimi held out a hand. "I'm the only one here who hasn't been with Tai?"

Sora leaned back in her chair. "Wait, what about before we moved in here? When I asked you about it yesterday you were really careful to make sure we were talking about after we got to the castle."

Mimi pushed her thumbs together, a blush appearing. "Let's just say it's a matter of semantics and leave it at that." Yolei's face lit up and she covered her mouth.

Sora regretted bringing it up and glared at Yolei. "But Tai told me what happened between you two. You can't tell me to be honest with Matt if you're not being honest with Henry."

Yolei's shoulders fell. "That's completely different."

"Yes. It's worse."

Mimi gave Yolei a sad nod. "Sora's right. We can't hold our men to a high standard if we don't follow through ourselves. I think Henry will understand one little slip. He's crazy about you; he won't let you go that easily."

"I hope so," Yolei groaned. "Okay, fine. You tell Matt and I tell Henry."

"Glad that's settled." Mimi grinned. "Anything else we need to discuss?"

Yolei raised a hand. "I kinda want to go back to the semantics."

"Would you look at the time?" Mimi stood up suddenly and grabbed her tray. "Better help Tommy with the dishes. Later, ladies!"

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda floated on her back in the middle of the river, hoping the quiet solitude would offer some chance at finding peace. A rigorous swim was her favorite way to keep in shape on her weeks off, and she would swear that was her intention in coming all this way with Lalamon. Once she got into the water however, her desire to exert any energy ceased.

The debriefing process had been painful for the entire patrol team. Yoshi had it worst: she had to describe both the conditions of Matt and TK's imprisonment and Gabumon and Patamon's death. Tai and Kari were disgusted by the whole thing and their looks reflected it. Even knowing it wasn't meant for her, it didn't make Yoshi feel any better. Thomas reacted with curiosity and dutifully jotted every detail, but at no point did he notice that Yoshi hated talking about it.

They came around to their senses in the morning, although Yoshi didn't know whether they did it themselves or someone like Davis had to berate them. Either way, Yoshi received sincere thanks from all of the officers, including the credit bonus she had shamefully fantasized about. Kari even hugged her; it was weird.

It had been a proud moment, but it faded fast, just like all of her accomplishments in the Digital World. It didn't take away the shock of having to live through all that. She still had to see those horrors every time she closed her eyes. And while nobody on the patrol team talked about it, all were rattled at the sight of partners dying. They all thought about how they'd react if it had been them. Yoshi looked to the shoreline at Lalamon catching some sun. As much as the two bickered, her partner was the only thing she had.

That may have been what bothered Yoshi most. Tai and Kari and the other digidestined cared very deeply for Matt and TK. Her concern for the two boys was professional; she didn't care about them as much as she worried about the consequences of not getting them out safely- as much to her as to them. It was selfish, but she couldn't honestly say she was so deeply attached to anybody in the world other than Lalamon.

As she closed her eyes, struggling to fight off these feelings of intense loneliness, she felt the water shift and instinctively dropped her legs, treading water as she worked out the source. The giant blue alligator Digimon was hard to miss.

She controlled her shriek, but she had plenty of words for Deckerdramon's partner on the shore. "Christopher! What the hell are you doing?!" He didn't answer. He didn't even look her way. She swam up to him and popped out of the water. "Are you even listening to me?!"

Christopher looked her up and down, making her realize her wet bikini gave him a very nice view. She dropped the thought when he turned back to Deckerdramon and said, "Sounds like you had a rough night."

"You don't know half of what we went through!" she exclaimed. Only he wasn't being sarcastic. He just watched Deckerdramon float in the water, a pained expression on his face. Calmer, Yoshi sat next to him. "But yeah, it was pretty hard."

"I think Ken and I talked more last night than we have since I got here." Christopher shook his head. "He was really happy to see them back, but..." He only stared at Deckerdramon.

Yoshi nodded. "Losing Digimon? Scary thought, isn't it?"

"It's a helpless feeling. Even when it could have been avoided." He choked up. "Even when it's your fault. It's like something being ripped out of you. It never goes away."

She watched him carefully. Was this really the same Christopher? He was nowhere near that mountain and had no idea who Matt and TK were. It tore at him all the same. Yoshi wanted to say something reassuring, but all she could muster was, "Guess all we can do is watch out for each other and make sure it doesn't happen again." Christopher only sighed.

"Yoshi!" Lalamon shouted, floating in and throwing a towel over her partner's shoulders. "You really should dry off before you go flirt with Christopher!"

Both she and Christopher turned to her and spat, "We're not flirting!" They looked at each other, suddenly angry. Yoshi huffed, got to her feet and stormed away.

"Good," Christopher said, facing his Digimon again. "I wanted to be alone right now anyway."

Yoshi didn't get far before she stopped walking. Something was still nagging at her. She turned around. Christopher stared back at her. His face was as lost as hers. They held it for a few seconds before Yoshi left for good. It didn't clarify anything for her.

"You know he checking out your ass, right?" Lalamon said.

Clenching her teeth, Yoshi held back her outburst. She wasn't even sure Lalamon was wrong. But she wasn't going to see a new side of Christopher without altering her impression of him. She kept walking, confidently replying, "Well, he should. I have been working out."

* * *

Ken Ichijouji didn't understand why he needed to be a part of Rika's crusade, but he wasn't going to say no to her. At least not yet; he knew she was itching to take her mind off the previous night and he failed to see how this was helping.

"Perfect," she said when she spotted TK in the library. He was seated at one of the tables, alone, writing on a legal pad.

"I don't know if we should bother him," Ken said. "I'm sure he had a long day." While it was later in the afternoon and TK had endured all the meetings with each of the teams, Ken wasn't sure about anything else Command wanted to run past the new arrivals.

"That's where you come in," Rika said. "You're friends with him, right? Go say hi. Show off your new girlfriend to him."

"Rika, you two have met. Twice."

"You know what I mean. I can't just walk up to him."

"He probably wants some space. Nobody's walking up to him." Ken looked across the room at Takato and Mikey. They were in the middle of a card game, but both stole frequent glances at TK.

"Well, that doesn't get him to talk to Marcus, now does it?" Rika pushed Ken towards TK.

As uncomfortable as he was about it, Ken approached his fellow digidestined. "Uh, hey, TK. Through with everything for the day?"

TK grimaced before looking up at Ken. "No. They're just giving us some time to ourselves before they do the rest. Something about getting more clothes and needing our digivices for some reprogramming." He shook his head. "It's a lot to take in."

"Uh, well, I just wanted to introduce you to Rika." Ken cleared his throat. "Last night you seemed a bit surprised that we were together."

TK nodded at Rika. "Sure, but we met again. With the rest of her team." His eyes shifted towards Takato. "We're really a cartoon in your world?"

Rika shrugged. "If it makes you feel better, I quit watching after the first episode. The writing was horrible. Anyway-"

"Hey Rika!" Takato apparently saw the intrusion as invitation to join in. Mikey was right behind him. "Hanging out with TK, are we?" Takato grinned at the blond.

Glaring at Takato, Rika answered, "Yes. TK, you remember Takato? He's not always an idiot fanboy so give him a chance." She turned to Mikey. "And this is Mikey. He's garbage. Do not give him a chance."

"Jeez, you girls can really hold a grudge," Mikey mumbled, walking away.

Takato watched him go, but hesitantly stuck around. "How long are you all going to keep shunning him?" he asked Rika.

"Until he gets the point." Rika turned back to TK. "Anyway, if you have enough time to write in your diary, you have enough time to talk to Marcus."

TK looked up at Rika, nose upturned. "I'm not talking to him. He didn't even show up to his meeting with us. I don't need to give that guy any of my time."

"Yeah, you do. He's in bad shape. I've never seen him like this."

Takato nodded at her. "Are you worried about him too? He's never this quiet."

"He needs you to tell him it wasn't his fault."

"Well, it was," TK insisted. "I saw the whole thing. He killed our Digimon. And now you think I owe him my time? I don't care if he feels bad. Matt and I are going through a lot worse."

"You little brat!" Rika growled. "We all know what you're going through! Be happy you're not in our world. At least Patamon will-"

"That's enough, Rika." Ken put a hand on her shoulder. "We should go." He bowed at TK. "Sorry for interrupting you."

TK shook his head. "You really know how to pick 'em, Ken."

Ken pulled Rika away until they were safely clear from TK. Then he held her shoulders. "Rika, what's wrong with you? You think treating him like that will make anything better?"

Rika clenched her teeth. "He doesn't want to help. What kind of digidestined is he?"

"One that's been through something awful and needs to sort out his own problems first. You can't force him to forgive Marcus. It doesn't work like that."

She pushed him away. "Yeah? Watch me." She marched away defiantly.

"Rika!" Ken walked after her, but her stride was too fast. "Is this really that important to you? You keep saying Marcus is a reckless idiot." He wondered if maybe Marcus would start showing a little more discretion after this.

Before walking out the front door, Rika turned around and said, "He is. And my team won't settle for anything less."

* * *

Sora Takenouchi knew Matt was going to have a hard time adjusting to this new life. She was determined to do whatever she could to make him as comfortable as possible. Once he had some free time, she took him back to her room to give them a moment alone for... whatever helped relieve him. Instead of the passionate reunion she expected, he just sat on her bed, hands folded with his head down.

She started by leaving him to his thoughts. Even getting away from everybody else and having a moment to himself, with only a supportive friend by his side, may have helped with whatever bothered him. Sora was confident she could handle this, as she had many times in the past, but she had to read him carefully.

It only took the slightest twitch in his eye, glancing at her for a fraction of a second, to worry her. She scooted closer and set her hands on his lap. "Matt, please. Tell me what's wrong." He looked away from her. "I'm serious. I'm here now. I need to know what's wrong. Maybe I can help you."

"I doubt it," he muttered, barely above a whisper.

Sora didn't hear him. "What?"

She did see his eyes widen suddenly before slamming shut. "Matt?" she asked.

Finally, Matt faced her. He took a long look, frowning the entire time before facing forward and slouching. "Nine years?" he mumbled.

She stroked his arm. "I bet it's hard to imagine. Trust me, it was harder being without you that long."

"Everything's different now, isn't it?"

"We'll get through it. I'm here." She almost choked up, but managed to add, "That hasn't changed."

He kept his head down. "You really waited all that time?"

"I..." She bit her lip. "I tried to."

Matt stood up, his back to her. He hesitated for a long time before he asked, "Tai?"

Sora had to take several deep breaths to compose herself as she explained, "Matt, I really tried. But we didn't even know if you were still alive. There were times we thought we found you and... you weren't there. I... couldn't do it anymore. I had to move on."

He didn't move. "Matt, please talk to me," Sora pleaded. "You need to talk to me."

Shuddering, he said, "Not yet." His voice choked up. "I'm not ready to talk yet."

"What do you mean? You can say anything to me. It's all right to be mad, but-"

"Do you remember the last thing you said to me?"

His question froze her. She thought about it for a while and answered, "No. Remember, it was a long time ago."

"You still said it." He opened the door, shaking his head. "And right now, I'm not."

"Not what?"

"Not talking to you." He stepped through the door and pulled it shut.

* * *

Yolei Inoue knew this was going to be a difficult conversation with Henry. Most of the conditions were ideal- her room, working on their robot with too much investment to mess everything up. The one problem was Terriermon himself. They didn't need him for anything related to his mechanical equivalent, but Henry brought him anyway. A mouth like that was going to make this twice as bad.

"Why'd you bring him up here?" she whispered as she and Henry did some wiring work in close proximity. She didn't want Terriermon hearing, but his giant ears made privacy difficult.

"After last night, I feel better having him close by."

"You don't have to be subtle around me, Yolei," Terriermon said. "If you two want to get down, I can go. Although I'm dying to see what all the fuss is about."

The serious look in her eyes killed his smirk. "Actually, Henry and I need to talk about something," she said.

Terriermon stared back for a while, then jumped off the dresser. "I'll be outside," he mumbled, suddenly grave.

Henry and Yolei remained silent as the Digimon left. Once the door closed, Henry stopped working and sat on the bed. "What's wrong?"

Yolei didn't move. "You know how Sora was dating Matt before everything?"

Narrowing an eye, he answered, "Between Suzie, Jeri and you, I'm well aware of that."

She nodded. "And you know Sora was with Tai last month?"

"No, but it doesn't surprise me. Where are you going with this?"

"She has to tell Matt she was with Tai, right?" Yolei stopped pretending to fiddle with the wires and sat in place.

"I guess. I don't know. It's none of my business."

"She's being honest with him. So I should too." She waited for him to respond. When he didn't, she nervously turned around, still on her knees, and bowed. "Back in July, I... sort of... slept with Tai."

Yolei braced herself for a reaction that didn't come. She opened her eyes and looked up at him. He stared back at her, totally lost.

Finally, he mumbled, "You... cheated?"

"Yeah," she huffed. "With everything else going on, I wanted to come clean."

He fell back on the bed, silent. She couldn't see his face anymore and grew worried. "Please say something," she begged.

"Say what? I'm... shocked. Why? Because I wasn't here?"

"No, you were here. Just... distracted with everything with Suzie. It was right after she joined Mikey's team. I spent four weeks waiting for you and it was like you were still gone."

Now Henry sat up and glared at her. "And you went to Tai? Tai let that whole mess happen!"

"And he felt miserable. You made him feel miserable." Her eyes shifted. "And two miserable people did something to stop feeling that way. I'm sorry."

Henry waited for her to look at him again before speaking. "And how do you expect me to feel about this?"

"Um... to respect my honesty, forgive me and understand that it won't happen again?" She batted her eyelashes, hoping for the tiniest bit of mercy.

He wanted to grant it. In the two months they had been together, she had become his motivation. Yolei was what he fought to protect. Yolei was what he looked forward to every time he came home. The night before had been so tiring and horrible he was thinking about asking off the team permanently to spend more time with her and less time with Algomon and other dying Digimon. Henry couldn't spit it out. He couldn't overlook it. He couldn't forgive it.

"You... felt that way and you couldn't talk to me?" He shook his head. "We're supposed to be able to tell each other everything. But you feel like I'm ignoring you and you run to somebody else instead of saying something?"

"I didn't run to him, I..." She stopped herself. In the end, what was the difference?

It didn't matter. "You couldn't tell me that?" Yolei looked away, tears starting to form. "Yeah, I was mad, but I never meant to hurt you. You never said anything to me. That's..."

"I don't know, I just... this was still new to me. It's been so long since I was in a serious relationship and I guess it hadn't sunk in yet."

"Well, yes, this is a serious relationship." He clenched his teeth, head slowly shaking. "And I know this because I'm... really hurt right now. I can't believe you did that."

"I know, and I'm sorry. I don't want this to screw everything up. I really like you!"

"I really like you too. But I can't just ignore this." He stood up and paced around the room. "Jeez, you know what we just went through. I mean, we may have killed one of the creators of this world. And then we have to watch Gabumon and Patamon die. The only thing that gets me through that sort of thing is getting to see you again."

He shook his head. "Now I'm just going to be worried. Wondering what you're doing without me. I can't work like that."

"Henry, what do I have to do to prove myself? I haven't had any problem since then." She gestured to their robot. "And look what we can make together. Henry, you can't-"

"I have to." He said, staring into her misty eyes. "We're done." He looked at the incomplete Terriermech. "Finish it by yourself. It doesn't mean anything anyway."

"But we worked so hard on it!" None of her pleas stopped him from opening the door. "Henry!"

"Whatever. My real partner's outside." He slammed the door behind him.

Yolei was left alone, sobbing, with nothing to stare at but her awesome robot that would never be finished. For as much progress as they had made on it, it never seemed so far away from completion.

* * *

Matt Ishida socked Tai in the face. Right in the middle of the hall, with plenty of onlookers to watch their commander go down. Nobody thought much of it. Nobody reacted.

This included Tai himself, who laid on the floor and stared at the vaulted ceiling for a few moments. He rubbed his cheek, sighed, and said, "Sora told you, huh?" Matt looked away, huffing.

Tai gave him a few more seconds before adding, "Anything else?"

With a shrug, Matt said, "No." He helped Tai up. "But you mind if we talk?"

Tai grinned as much as his aching jaw would let him. "Sure. I know just the place."

He was happy nobody else was in the bath. Whatever Matt wanted to say, it was probably something private. They didn't speak until after they were in the water.

"It's a lot nicer than some dirty pond, huh?" Tai stretched out, hands behind his head, a calm smile on his face.

"Nine years," Matt mumbled, sitting upright.

"Nine years," Tai echoed. "I mean, we did the best we could. Just one dead end too many. You get how tough a situation that is, right?"

"No. I don't." Matt shook his head. "That's the problem. I can't get any of this. One day we're lost and miserable and barely alive. Now everyone's living it up in this castle. Isn't this the one Myotismon was in?"

"Yep!" Tai grinned. "Gallantmon made short work of him. These other teams really are something else."

"And I'm just supposed to be friends with them overnight?" Matt scoffed. "All these new people... new Digimon... new abilities."

Tai chuckled. "Bio-merging... crazy stuff, right?"

"The whole thing's crazy! It's a lot to take in at once. It's..." Matt sighed. "I'm overwhelmed right now. I think TK is too."

Tai shuffled closer to Matt. "And we want to help you! But we can't do it if you're going to be angry at us for what happened while you were gone. If we knew we'd find you it wouldn't have happened, I swear."

"I wouldn't say I'm angry. At least not at you."

Rubbing his jaw, Tai narrowed an eye. "You sure? You did just punch me in the face."

Matt shook his head again. "I'm just frustrated at everything. Even myself. You're probably right. I shouldn't be upset about you two."

"The last thing we wanted to do was hurt you." Tai put a hand on Matt's shoulder. "And Sora and I already talked about it. I'm not getting in the way." With a frown, he added, "We'll be back to the way it was. Like you never left."

Matt looked down. "The way it was? That's the last thing I want."

Tai pulled his hand away. "What? What do you mean?"

"You know what was hardest for me?" Matt closed his eyes. "That hug. We all get along now. I wasn't ready for that." Shaking his head, he said, "How can you all still be friends? I was sure if we ever found a way out of here we'd never talk to each other again."

Tai kept a straight face. "We all forgave each other pretty fast after we lost you two." He sighed. "That was the only good thing to come out of it."

Matt sank deeper into the water, letting himself absorb it before answering, "I'm not there. It's too soon. I wish I could forget everything." He winced. "I can't. It's all I think about when I see you guys. Especially Sora."

"Sora?" Tai's eyes widened. "C'mon, Matt, I fought with you way more than she did."

"You're an idiot. I'm used to that. That's why I can talk to you." Matt looked out one of the elevated windows. "I'm not used to arguing with Sora. Not the way we did. It scared me. When I thought we'd never talk to each other again... that included her too."

Tai shrugged. "It was a tough time. It'll be better now."

"Yeah, now..." Matt sat upright. "Those years were us at our worst. We were supposed to find a way to support each other no matter what. We couldn't do it. The last thing she said to me before it happened was if we ever got out alive we'd need to have a long talk about our relationship."

"Matt, I'm sure she didn't mean that."

"She did. And I agreed with her." Matt sunk back into the bath. "I'm not over that. I can't be with her right now."

Tai tried to speak but he could only gasp. For how many years Sora gave up in the hopes of seeing Matt again, and how Tai so graciously stepped aside for them, he couldn't accept that it was all in jeopardy. "You don't really mean that, do you? You can't just leave her like this."

"She left me first!" Matt shouted, jumping to his feet. "She ran to you!"

Tai matched his tone. "See, you are mad! And you shouldn't be! Dammit, Matt, she wants to be with you! It pisses me off that she wants to be with you more than me, and if you're gonna screw that up..." His hand balled into a fist.

"Don't you think I know that!?" Matt was on the verge of crying. "The whole time we were together I was afraid I'd say something I won't be able to take back. I can't do this right now. Not when I still feel this way."

"So you're gonna..." Tai waved a hand. "...go off on your own again?"

"I don't know. I need time. I'm sure I'll get over it." Matt closed his eyes. "I'm just not ready."

Tai huffed. "Okay. But you damn well better come to me when you need someone to talk to. No more sulking on your own, got it?"

Matt sat back in the water before nodding and answering, "Yeah. I don't know why I'm fine telling you all this, but I'm glad you understand."

As they finished up and returned inside to change, Matt looked around the entire bath area- at the rocks surrounding the pool to the clear water to the proper plumbing and drainage. "You know this really is pretty nice, Tai. I never thought we'd have anything resembling a stable life here."

Nodding, Tai said, "We're well protected, we eat well, we get along okay. We get bored sometimes, but we can't complain." He opened the door to the changing room, turning back to his old friend. "Give us this much- we're not running anymore."

* * *

Kenta Kitagawa didn't realize how annoying his newest task would be until he sat down and started doing it. Once Joe had finished helping him set up a makeshift nursery for the digieggs, he and Angie were left to care for them.

That meant one thing, and they were already sick of it: "So how many times do we have to rub these damn things?" Angie muttered. Despite her attitude, she still caressed Poyomon's digiegg with a gentle touch.

"Hey, don't swear in front of the babies!" Kenta peered over his egg. "I don't know how long this takes. We all chipped in with Palmon."

"Think we can talk Palmon into helping?"

"Well, it would be pretty rude to ask, but I'm sure Gatomon and them would be willing to." Kenta continued rubbing his charge. "This won't be too bad. It's like we're parents!"

Angie narrowed her eyes. "Don't make this any weirder." With a huff, she looked at her egg impatiently. "You better be really cute when you pop out of there."

"Poyomon's very cute," said TK. Neither Angie or Kenta saw him approach them. TK took the digiegg from Angie and gave it a rub of his own.

"Oh yeah... you already had to go through this once," Kenta said. TK sighed and handed the egg back to Angie.

"I'll take really good care of it," Angie said eagerly.

TK forced a smile. "Thanks. I'm sure you will." He walked away. Once his back was turned, Angie punched Kenta in the shoulder, glaring.

Kenta ignored it. He saw three figures blocking TK's exit- Rika, Marcus and Agumon. Kenta handed Angie his egg and joined TK. Whatever was going on, he needed to keep tabs on it.

Rika's hands were on her hips. "Okay, no more sulking. You two are hashing this out now."

"I already told you: I have nothing to say to him." The bitterness in TK's voice replaced any politeness he had shown Angie.

He tried walking past them. Rika stood in his way. As they glared at each other, Rika said, "Marcus, say something! Come on!"

Marcus put a hand on Rika's shoulder, freezing both of them. Head still down, he said, "I'm sorry about my apprentice. She thinks this is something we can talk about. She means well, but she will never understand what I did to you." Rika glared at him, but he ignored her.

TK's eyes shifted to Marcus. "What, and you think you do?"

"All too well. It's not the first time you lost him, is it?"

Clenching his teeth, TK answered, "That's been going around, hasn't it? Who told you that?"

"You did. Through your fist."

TK backed away, his eyes widening. He looked down at his hand. It started shaking.

"It's not my first time either," Marcus said.

"What do you mean? You've never had anyone hit you?"

"Kid, I get hit all the time. Hell, hit me again if it'll help." Marcus shook his head. "It's not the first time my stupidity got someone's partner killed."

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me." TK considered hitting Marcus again, but decided that it wouldn't help. "Is that why your fourth guy is never here?"

Marcus placed a hand on Agumon's head. "It was mine." He stared at TK. The enmity had left both their eyes. "I got too caught up in the hate. It made Agumon too powerful. Too destructive. He couldn't take it." He shook his head. "Ever seen digivolution go wrong? It ain't pretty."

TK looked away. Of course he had seen it. And he knew the effect it had...

"Marcus..." Rika mumbled. She had seen it too.

"I thought I learned my lesson," Marcus continued. "Turns out I'm not as strong as I thought. I'm sorry I'm putting you through all this. I don't expect you to forgive me." He turned around and walked out.

Before following his partner, Agumon looked at TK and said, "I've forgiven Boss for it."

Rika's eyes darted between Marcus and TK. She wasn't sure if speaking up would help, but she knew there wouldn't be more opportunities. In the end, she was left staring at TK, silently pleading.

TK didn't notice. His head was too far down. Still, he shouted, "Wait."

Marcus and Agumon stopped. They did not turn around.

"You're right. I can't forgive you right now," TK said. "It's too much. It's too soon. Maybe someday I'll get over it, but..." He took a deep breath and raised his voice. "But that doesn't give you an excuse to quit."

He walked up to Rika, still yelling at Marcus. "You can't let this destroy you. I don't know how things work around here, but you're in charge of a team. And whatever your team does, it involves stuff like getting me and Matt out of hellholes. That's too important for you to doubt yourself because of what you did to us. Your team needs you." He gestured to Rika, even if Marcus wasn't looking at them. "She needs you. She wouldn't be annoying me so much about it if she didn't."

Rika hoped neither noticed her sneer. TK continued: "You can't let the doubt beat you. There's too much at stake. I've seen it before. You're gonna hit a spot where you need to use Burst Mode... and you can't hesitate. You need to act. Got that?"

Marcus stood there for a long time before he replied. Without turning around he said, "Yeah, I got it. Rika? Give him those goggles." She forgot she had them slung around her shoulder and pulled them off. "He'll decide when I earn them back." His head rose. "Until then, we fight."

With a nod, he added, "C'mon, Agumon, let's do some training."

"Sounds good, Boss," Agumon replied, leading their charge out of the habitat.

Rika stood there with her mouth open, glaring at the retreating Marcus and a still-sullen TK. She handed the goggles over, groaning. "I'll never understand men."

TK looked them over, shrugged, pocketed them and turned around. As he walked past Kenta, the tamer said, "Boy, those introductions must have been thorough if they brought up Burst Mode."

"No kidding," Rika said, scoffing. "I've known them three years and I've never seen Burst Mode. I used to think Marcus was full of himself."

"It's something else," TK replied, shaking his head. "Almost like a whole new level."

"Wait!" Kenta exclaimed. "You've seen it? How?"

TK stopped walking. "It was a dream I had while I was out. I was in the real world..."

"Human world," Rika mumbled.

"...Agumon was fighting Algomon. In the end, Marcus was able to use Burst Mode to beat him. It was the only dream I can remember from then." He sighed and continued walking. "But having a dream about people I never met? That's pretty weird, isn't it?"

Rika and Kenta stared at each other as TK returned to Angie for another pat of his partner's egg. "What the heck do you think that's about?" Kenta asked her.

As she stared at TK, her eyes narrowed. "It means we have another one."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 15: "Love Astronaut"**  
Matt finds comfort by occupying himself with his music, meeting someone new to confide in. Mikey seeks to restore his damaged reputation the only way he knows how.

" _All I can do is live my life the way I want. And right now I don't want you in it."_

* * *

 **Author's Notes  
** When I reviewed Data Squad for Digimon: System Restore, I summarized Marcus's unique personal philosophies in something called The Marcus Code. One of its tenets is that you can read somebody by the way they punch. Given TK's visceral reaction to Patamon's death, it's natural for this to come into play. The Marcus Code also fuels many of his other actions and attitudes in this episode.

Despite the rather odd lack of hard Sorato interactions in the second tri. movie, one very subtle gesture there prompted a fairly significant rewrite of their bedroom conversation here. Obviously their relationship was presumed intact going into the Digital World and while they haven't done much to confirm it, there are enough little signs here and there to suggest it's still going on in the background.

Speaking of which, the bath scene was written right around the time the first news of movie two started to trickle in, so I don't remember if this was a response to the news of a hot spring trip or a fun coincidence. The second movie aired as I was finishing up episode 16.

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B00YCPNVR8


	16. 15- Love Astronaut

**Neverworld**

 _I've been searching for you. Have you been searching for me?_  
 _I've been running around and now I'm down on my knees._  
 _I go looking abroad. I've been sailing the seas._  
 _I've been looking for love but is it looking for me?_  
 _\- Murder Mystery, "Love Astronaut"_

 **Episode 15**

Mimi Tachikawa never failed to be impressed by her own strokes of genius. It hit her after seeing Matt on a couch in the library. He leaned over a sheet of paper on a table, glaring at it with a disgusted look on his face. With a pencil, he erased something and jotted something else. Then he leaned back and made the slightest gesture with his left hand. That's when Mimi had her epiphany.

A full day hadn't done much for either Matt or TK. The castle was still foreign to them, and they lacked anything resembling a routine to rely on. They didn't even have their own space: hoping to avoid the rooming issues that arose when Mikey's group arrived, Izzy temporarily assigned them Takuya and Koji's rooms. They still felt like guests, but Mimi at least had a solution for the elder brother.

She hovered over him, confirming that the paper had scribbles of song lyrics, most annotated with ideas for chords. Matt positioned his arm over them, trying to shield them from Mimi without looking like he was hiding anything. "I take it you're done giving me the silent treatment?" he mumbled.

"I never-" Mimi caught herself mid-outburst and calmed down. "Doesn't take you long to get back to your music, huh?"

He shook his head. "Now that we actually have paper." Matt shuffled in his seat. "It's sort of a solo process."

"Must be hard in the middle of everything."

"My room doesn't feel... mine."

Mimi smiled brightly and extended a hand. "I know just the place!"

For the first time, he looked up at her. Her face was as disarming as ever. He had no place for a reply. Matt took his lyrics and her hand.

She led him downstairs, slowly to watch her footing in the dim light. "This wasn't part of the tour, was it?"

"No..." Matt didn't even know which turns Mimi had made to find these stairs. He stumbled on an uneven step, almost losing his balance. "What's down here?" She only giggled.

At the bottom, she led him to a door that was unmarked and hard to see. "Get ready for heaven!" she shouted, pushing the door open.

The room inside was fully lit and lined with shelves, tables and counters. Many of them held dusty drum kits, a piano, keyboards, guitars, a violin, two saxophones and a small sample of wind and brass instruments. The only open space was in the back. Nene sat there holding a guitar, staring at the intruders with a mortified blush on her face.

"Nene!" Mimi exclaimed. "What are you doing down here?

"Well, I..." The former idol sighed and looked at her guitar. "I've been practicing. Jeremy told me about this room. I didn't think anyone came down here."

"They usually don't." Mimi looked at the bright lights. "And I suppose Jeremy replaced all the lights for you, huh?"

Matt ran his hand along a shelf. It was covered in dust. "What is this?"

"Well, when we get bored, sometimes one of us will try to learn an instrument. This is where they go once they give up." She smiled at Nene. "But I guess it's a good room to practice too. Don't be ashamed. Getting any good?"

"It's coming back to me. " Nene looked down. "Not that it matters."

Matt picked up another guitar, but it was warped beyond use. "Why did you bring me down here? Half of this is garbage."

In the far corner of the room, Mimi pulled a black case out from under a stack of instruction books and sheet music. She set it on an empty table and presented it to Matt. Frowning, he popped it open. His eyes almost teared up when he saw the bass, _his_ bass, or at least an identical model in perfect condition. He picked it up, admired it, then turned to Mimi and mumbled, "How?"

"When we figured out the river could be used for more than just food and essentials, it was the first thing we ordered." Mimi shook her head, a faint smile on her face. "We never thought for a moment that you were really gone."

Nene peered over Matt's shoulder. "A bass? Were you in a band?"

Mimi's face lit up. "Oh, his band was huge! You should have seen it."

"We really weren't," Matt replied, shaking his head. He found a chair in the corner, sat down and started tuning. "Played a couple of big concerts, one or two songs people like... never really took off."

"Did you write your own songs?" Nene asked. Matt nodded without looking. "I'm impressed already. Maybe you could give me some pointers."

Clasping her hands, Mimi said, "Well, I'll let you two work things out. No starting a band without me or Yoshi!"

Matt let her slam the door before shaking his head. He was still focused on tuning his bass. "Nothing personal, but I'm not in the mood to give anyone lessons. I just need to vent."

Nene frowned, but nodded. She set her guitar down and said, "I understand. I have no place to ask you for a favor."

"Could you get that sheet I left by the door?" She nodded and fetched it, only then realizing that just as he didn't owe her, she didn't owe him. At the very least, she was going to see what he had written.

Not only did she see the words, she saw the chord markings. With those, a melody popped into her head and she sang: "Giving everything to you... faintest hopes of hanging on... thinking that we made it through, just-" She stopped when she saw the fourth chord and smiled at Matt. "Oh, wow, I was expecting a G there."

Matt glared back. He held out a hand to get his sheet back. "This isn't some pop song."

She handed it over. "I know. Feels like half of my songs had that progression."

"Then write something different."

"I wish it worked like that."

He stared at his sheet for a moment, hoping to get her melody out of his head and come up with his own. Before he could, it dawned on him and he looked up at her, an eyebrow raised. "You were pro?"

Nene looked back at the door, frowning as she answered, "I didn't want this to get out, but I was an idol singer."

Matt rolled his eyes. "I can see why you don't want that getting out."

Now she was frowning for a different reason. "I'm not ashamed of my career. I worked very hard for it and it was very rewarding. I just don't want any more attention than I already have."

"Guess at least you had people caring about what you did."

Nene sat down again, this time closer to Matt. "Yes, but I know why they really cared. It would have been nice if they listened to what I had to say. I tried to suggest a few of my own song ideas. They never flew. At least your music came from you. I envy that."

Matt scoffed. "You don't have to humor me. Even the guys in the band didn't know where I was coming from half the time. The fans we did have didn't really get it either. I guess it was-"

"-too tied to what you went through," Nene finished, nodding. "That was my problem too. What else is there for us to write about?" She gestured at his sheet. "Someone who didn't know any better would think you were writing about a girl."

Matt stared at his lyric sheet, then glanced at Nene. He set the page aside and faced her. "Let's hear what you got."

* * *

Angie Hinomoto felt an odd sense of peace about enjoying a can of juice in the kitchen's break area. She wasn't even alone, but Tommy restocking the fruit basket wasn't distracting at all compared to the chaos she faced in the habitat on a regular basis. As tedious as her current assignment was, she knew it was leading to a reward. It was more than she could say about anything in her past.

The calm ended when Mikey slumped into the room. He saw her and stopped, weighing a retreat. Angie frowned, stood up and said, "No, it's okay. Sit down." Hesitantly, he obeyed as she opened the refrigerator, pulled out his favorite flavor of juice, and tossed him the can.

He stared at it as Angie sat back down. Mikey sat at the farthest table from her, but a minute into his drinking he slammed his can down and said, "So are you ever going to call off the dogs? All you girls have been ignoring me for a month."

"What makes you think I'm behind any of that?" Angie replied calmly. "I'm just the new girl who cleans up after the Digimon. They don't listen to me." She stared at him. "They just have my back. That's all."

"Well, I'd really like to stop worrying about Mimi messing with my food."

"Oh, she stopped doing that after a week," Tommy said. "You're all clear now." He nodded at them and left.

Angie shrugged. "There you go. They'll get over it eventually."

"How about you?" Mikey asked, his voice calmer. "Are you ever going to forgive me? I mean, in the end it was just a misunderstanding."

Her eyes narrowed. "It was a pretty serious misunderstanding. And it's not about forgiving you. I've moved on. And I've realized my life is better when you're not a part of it."

Mikey frowned. That was hard to hear from someone he once considered his best friend. "Do you really mean that? I mean, if it wasn't for me you'd be-"

"I'd be in class right now. Actually growing up... worrying about entrance exams... you know, real life? Because of you I'm stuck here being 18 for who knows how long. I just spent the last four hours rubbing an egg. I always dreamed of being a mother someday, but this isn't what I had in mind."

He held out a hand. His eyes suddenly intensified. "So what you're saying is you want to get out of here."

"Well, duh!" Angie shook her head. "But that's not happening, isn't it?" She stood up, shoving her chair under the table. "So all I can do is live my life the way I want. And right now I don't want you in it."

She threw her can out, stopping before she left. Her head lowered, she said, "I don't always enjoy my job here, but I know in the end those eggs are going to hatch and Matt and TK will appreciate the work I put into them." Angie looked at him. His face was expressionless, waiting for her to make her point. She thought she already had. "It's a lot more fulfilling than thinking the only thing I'm good at is helping you reach your dreams."

Before she walked out, she added, "But you don't even have a dream, do you?"

Mikey returned to his drink, nursing it alone. Of all the things Angie said, all he could dwell on was her life back home. That's what she wanted, even if her life back home didn't include him. To him, that was how to get back in her good graces. That was how to redeem himself among the other girls. That was his only option. No matter how much the others had tried and failed to find a way out of this place, he hadn't had a go of it yet. That's all that counted, because he was Mikey Kudo, and no matter how much others hated him, he was determined to save every last one of them.

* * *

Ewan Amano didn't understand why Nene asked him to meet her, much less why she would want to do so in a dark, neglected room at the bottom of a staircase he needed help finding. It was all very sneaky, which usually meant bad things when Nene was involved.

He was surprised the room was not only lit well, but something as benign as a music room, dusty as it was.

Nene and Matt huddled around a table, in the middle of their collaboration. "I still think the solo drags a little," said Nene.

"Adds a little anticipation," Matt replied. "Makes you a bit anxious. Sets up your last verse better."

Ewan knocked on a table. "Sis? You wanted to see me?"

Grinning at Matt, Nene stood up and approached her little brother, hands clasped. "Matt, meet our secret weapon."

Matt set his bass down and followed her. "Does he play anything?"

Nene chortled. "What does he play? What do we need him to play?"

"Excuse me?" Ewan blurted, caught off guard.

"If you're serious about this, first thing we need is a drummer." Matt scrutinized a snare drum next to him, unsatisfied by the quality.

With a bright smile, Nene said, "Congrats, Ewan, you're our new drummer."

"I don't plays drums," Ewan said, exasperated.

"What?! You don't?"

"No. I play classical piano, violin, clarinet and trombone."

Matt's eyes widened. Nene's narrowed. "Oh, what good are you?" she muttered.

Nene huffed and started digging through a shelf. Matt turned to Ewan. "Four instruments?"

"Well, I wouldn't say my clarinet's performance quality," Ewan admitted.

"How long will it take you to learn drums?" Nene asked, her head in a pile of books.

"If we aren't sent out again and people leave me alone..." Ewan thought for a moment. "A few weeks."

"A few weeks?!" Matt exclaimed. Usually that question was answered in years.

"It'll have to do," Nene said, unsatisfied. She pulled out a practice block, drumsticks and a lesson book and handed them to her brother. "Don't let us down."

Ewan frowned. "I'll let you know how things are going." He rubbed cobweb from the drumsticks. "You're really practicing down here? It's filthy."

Nene frowned. "It really is. If you see Sora, ask if she can come down here and clean up."

He nodded and stepped out, pulling the door closed behind him. Matt was still in shock. "A few weeks?"

She shook her head. "My brother plays the trombone? This is what happens when I leave him alone for too long."

"Four instruments at our age is impressive. And you had the career instead?"

"The lifestyle never appealed to him," Nene said with a shrug. "But he's very talented. Mimi adores him."

"And he's willing to learn a new instrument for us?"

"Ewan and I are always there for each other." She stared at the door, her smile fading. "He's the reason I'm here."

Matt returned to the table, trying to recall her story. He had heard so many personal histories from all the other teams they sort of blended together. "He got pulled in and you went after him or something?"

"Yeah." Her hand clenched and found its way to her chest. She didn't like to think about the sort of limbo they were all in, much less the circumstances that led her to it. "For him, it was worth it. My brother and I care for each other very much."

He looked down at his lyric sheet as she sat next to him. They had both been working on their own song. Matt began to realize they were writing about the same thing. "I know how you feel."

"It seems like you and your brother are close too."

Matt froze. Of course he was close to TK; nobody would deny that. But he didn't want to talk about it. Especially after what they suffered through. But he looked at Nene, this young woman who had attained the kind of stardom he had secretly dreamed of, who sacrificed almost as much for her brother, and who was somehow leaning on him for guidance. He had known her for only a little more than two days. He didn't care.

"I didn't have to go after him," he said, keeping his voice low. "Gabumon was beaten. I was out of the fight. But we all knew it was going to be bad. MagnaAngemon was in trouble and... TK ran in. It was instinct. I wasn't thinking." He looked around the room, at the bright lights and all the priceless wood and brass rotting in the basement. Matt could have seen them all new. "I missed nine years because of that."

"I... would have done the same thing." Nene looked aside. "And I haven't been here very long but I think everybody else would have too."

"That's just it... I don't regret it." His lip quivered. "I don't know how the others got by not knowing what happened to us." Voice cracking, he confessed, "I wouldn't have survived not knowing whether TK was alive. I'd make the same decision again, even knowing how much I gave up."

He sat back in his chair and checked his eyes. They were still dry, but only barely. Nene was never going to be convinced he wasn't suffering. It was a shock when she was pulled into the world; she could only imagine being a part of it one day and having it completely change around her the next with no warning. And if her friends seemed so comfortable with it? Yet somehow he still knew he had done the right thing. Somehow his love for his brother never wavered. Somehow he was willing to show her all this.

Nene leaned forward and put a hand on his knee. She looked him in the eyes, waiting for them to find her. When they did, she lost her breath for a moment. Then it returned, and she said what she needed to:

"You're very strong, Matt Ishida."

* * *

Izzy Izumi wanted to approach TK's dream about Data Squad members carefully. Nobody was happy about the way the digiquartz interview had been conducted and he knew he couldn't give TK the same treatment. That interrogation didn't even bear much fruit; any theories he developed couldn't be tested until the next hypothetical arrival more than a year away. He was looking for another lead, and even considered revisiting his data on Ryo's situation. Granted, that involved getting a data sample from Cyberdramon- a frightening and dangerous task. But testing for any traces of Millenniummon would prove informative, especially with TK and Matt having their own run-in with him and Christopher owning a Cyberdramon to use as a control.

Talking to TK was far easier than risking getting his face ripped off. He even talked to Tai and Kari about handling it gracefully, asking TK to come up on his own time, when he felt up for it. TK arrived on the top floor a day later, carrying several sheets of paper. Izzy took his tablet and a notepad and met the boy with a smile.

"Ready to talk about it?"

"Actually..." TK handed over the stack. "I figured it would be easier for me to write it down. That Jeri girl let me use her computer."

Izzy scanned the paper- a five-page, single-spaced document detailing TK's entire experience. The descriptions were thorough and presented a clear, smooth flow of events.

"Sorry about the font. She didn't have any good options," TK added.

The operations officer grinned. "Welcome back, TK."

As Izzy returned to his desk to read it over, TK noticed Kari. She wore headphones and stared intently at her monitor, paying no attention to him. He leaned over her shoulder and asked, "So how you do read all this?"

She didn't answer, leaning forward and turning away from him. "Kari? You there?" he asked. Kari didn't respond.

Instead, Zoe walked up to them, putting a hand on Kari's shoulder. "Are you hearing something?"

Kari scrunched her forehead and pulled her headphones off. "Maybe. It's really faint, but it sounds..." She handed Zoe the headset. "What do you think?"

As Zoe slipped it on, Kari finally noticed TK. His proximity startled her. "Oh, TK..." She recovered and smiled at him. "Did you need something?

He frowned. "Just... seeing what you were up to. You seem busy." He backed away, all the way to the elevator.

Zoe returned the headset. "I think I hear it too, but it's too far away to do anything. Maybe wait for it to get louder or show up on the radar or something."

"That's the plan. Thanks!" They flashed bright smiles at each other and Kari returned to work.

One station over, Thomas was getting his turn with TK's report. He frowned the entire time.

"I assume you don't remember any of this?" Izzy asked.

"Supposedly I was asleep the entire time so it's moot," Thomas replied. "But Gaomon doesn't remember it, nor was there any report filed with DATS."

Izzy folded his arms. "Unlike Ryo and digiquartz, your world would have documentation on this event, wouldn't it?" Thomas nodded. "That makes it easier to accept that it was a dream."

Thomas held up a finger. "There's one problem." He planted his finger into the report. "The details here are impossible for TK to have known. He states with confidence that the event took place outside of Tokyo and guesses that it may have been in the Yokohama area, even describing local landmarks accurately."

Izzy wrote something in his notepad. "We'll need to ask if he's ever been to Yokohama. If so, it's possible that his subconscious created that setting-"

"That's the other problem. If his subconscious is going to generate a Mega digivolution for Agumon, it would be WarGreymon." Thomas tapped on the report. "He refers to ShineGreymon by name and describes him accurately, despite having never seen him before."

"He somehow knew about Burst Mode too. Did he describe that right?"

"Not quite." Thomas flipped to the fourth page. "He mentioned helping Marcus reach it- providing the final push. It's an entirely internal process. It doesn't work like that."

"That makes it more confusing, but it doesn't cancel anything out."

Thomas shook his head. "No. It's very worrying. Usually the visitor is the one who doesn't recall the events. Ken remembers Ryo in his world. Mikey remembers everyone in his world. This is in reverse. TK remembers going to our world instead."

"We have to assume he didn't really go. Somehow elements of your world found its way over to his and created one vivid dream." Izzy sighed. "And no others. He didn't remember anything else."

"But wait a sec..." Davis said. Neither Izzy nor Thomas assumed he was listening. "Who says dreams aren't real?"

The interruption surprised Izzy, but he answered earnestly: "Thomas doesn't remember it and TK isn't claiming it really happened, so-"

"So what? Ryo doesn't remember being in our world and we don't remember being in Mikey's. Still happened."

Thomas hummed in disapproval. "Are you saying this could have happened even if the only recollection of it is a dream?"

Davis shrugged. "Ask Koichi how real his dream was."

Izzy cringed... and made a note to do just that. "His dream in the human world was reality in the Digital World..."

"...so hypothetically the reverse could be true for TK," Thomas concluded.

"But hold on," Izzy raised a finger. "The worlds were closed off after your point zero, so there's no window in your world for this to have actually occurred."

Thomas sighed. "Actually, if your records are accurate, your fight with Millenniummon was right before our point zero. So not only were our Digimon still in the human world..."

"...that fight is a possible causation?" Thomas nodded. "Now I have a headache."

Out of nowhere, Kari started raising her voice: "Listen, before I can do anything I need to know what you're looking at." She was talking into her headset. Zoe had a hand on her shoulder, trying to listen in. "I don't care if you say it's urgent. I don't know if it's urgent if you don't send over the details... yes, that's working now." Now Thomas and Izzy were watching her closely. She nodded. "No, you're going to send over what you saw and we're going to look at it and decide how to respond, got it?" Another pause, then she added, "Good." She threw her headset onto her desk.

Zoe was beaming. "Attagirl, Kari!" Kari looked over her shoulder and grinned at Zoe. "That's how you talk to Takuya!" They high-fived.

"That was Takuya?" Izzy asked.

"What did he want?" Thomas said, leaning in to peek at Kari's radar.

Kari smiled at him. No questioning was going to ruin her mood. "Oh, he thinks his castle's about to be attacked and is requesting immediate assistance."

* * *

Sora Takenouchi could never stand to be bossed around. Although she wasn't in charge of her department, she took fewer orders from Jeri than Jeri took from Izzy. Mostly she did her own thing at her own pace and determined what needed to get done while Jeri handled the administrative work and answered to the officers. So she was already annoyed that Ewan would ask her to add a neglected room in the basement to her priorities.

At the same time, the curiosity of why Ewan would make such a request compelled her to fulfill it. She knew what was in there, but she didn't think anyone outside the hospitality team did. Sora tried not to look alarmed when she saw Matt and Nene. His hand was over hers, demonstrating the fingering on a tricky chord sequence. Matt looked up only briefly, making the slightest eye contact before resuming the lesson.

Nene, on the other hand, smiled. "Oh, Sora. You know I love you, right?"

Sora frowned; Nene wasn't the one she wanted to hear that from. "I'll just be..." She looked at the shelves. They were in bad shape. "...actually, I'll come back later."

"I'll help. I never meant for you to do this alone." Nene handed her guitar to Matt and walked over. Matt kept his head down.

Sora stared at him as he picked up Nene's guitar and started strumming. She had heard the explanation from Tai. Of course she wasn't happy about it, an especially annoyed Matt didn't tell her himself, but she could tell there was a problem. She was only dismayed she couldn't help him figure it out. Just like before, she was left waiting for him.

"Where do we start?" Nene asked.

Handing her a rag, Sora answered, "Pick a surface and start wiping."

As they brushed and wiped whatever was nearby, and as Matt continued to strum, Nene started the conversation: "You know, if we threw out everything we can't use anymore, there's probably enough room here for a studio."

"That would take a while," Sora mumbled. "We sort of forgot all this was down here."

"It would be worth it. Matt and I are already talking about forming a band."

Sora raised an eyebrow at Nene. The idol pursed her lips, blowing a pile of dust off a clarinet case. It flew into her face; she chuckled and wiped it off. "You never said anything about being into music before," Sora said.

Nene sighed and faced her. With a shy smile, she said, "I suppose it's going to get out now anyway- I was an idol singer."

"An idol singer?" Sora backed away, suddenly uneasy. "You mean... singing and dancing and wearing cute dresses on stage and all that?"

"The whole works. The song I arranged that dance to last month was mine." Nene looked at Matt. "Matt was the first person here I told."

It took everything Sora had not to look at Matt. "Why Matt? Why now? Performing in front of thousands of people? You should be proud."

Nene smiled politely, waving her down. "Oh, you give me too much credit. It was more like hundreds, not thousands. And I am proud, but you know what the guys here are like." She turned to Sora, her smile growing. "I'd be giving free handshakes to everyone."

Now Sora looked at Matt; their hands had been touching when she walked in. His strumming was aimless; she knew he was only tuning out the conversation.

"But that's in the past," Nene said. "Right now I just want to focus on making music. Matt's helping me with that."

Sora kept staring at Matt. She knew jumping to conclusions was a terrible idea, but how could she not? Worse, she knew everything she wanted to say would only complicate things further.

An alarm bell saved her. Sora ignored it; she knew which tones applied to her. Nene and Matt, however, looked up. "What's going on?" Matt asked.

"Calling for the response team," Sora answered. "Guess that's just Yolei, Cody and Takato now."

"And me, unfortunately," Nene added. "They're down a pair and incidents have been picking up again, so our team's helping fill in when we're not busy with the railroad project." She turned to Matt. "I'll see what I can do to talk my way out of it. I'm having way more fun down here." Nene winked at Sora and ran out.

Once she was gone, Matt chuckled. "You're getting the wrong idea, aren't you?"

"I sure hope it's the wrong idea," Sora answered. She faced him, throwing her brush on the shelf. "An idol singer? She's been here two months and she never told anybody until you showed up."

Matt shook his head. "You know me. I hate idol singers. They're total fakes. She's trying to find her real voice. She sure has enough to say."

Sora leaned against the wall, folding her arms. "Matt, I respect that you need time. Maybe I did too. I don't know. But this hurts. I'm right back to waiting again. Only now I know exactly where you are... just not whether you want me anymore." She picked up her brush and the rag Nene had left. "It's bad enough as it is without you getting close to someone else."

"This is for our own good." Matt kept his head down. "I'm mad and I know I shouldn't be." His fingers moved between chords but he stopped playing. "This is helping. I'm trying to get past what happened before. I want to move on."

"And there's... nothing I can do?"

"Just give me space."

"But Nene can help?"

For the first time, Matt looked at her. He was sneering. "Yes," he answered, his tone biting at her. "And no, we're not. Okay?"

It wasn't. Sora had forgotten about that face. This was the face of their arguments. It once made her question whether they could make it together. Whatever terrible things she had once said to him to make him retreat like this were directed at this face. It was back, and she knew he was right. She needed to give him space. Otherwise she would never be able to escape this face.

"Fine," she said, barely above a whisper. "I... can't wait to hear what you wrote." Sora slipped out the door, closing it shut behind her and leaning against it, shaking. Yes, she had to back away. Yes, she had to trust him with Nene. Yes, she had to let him forgive her on his terms. She knew all of this. She just hoped he knew how much it would kill her.

* * *

Thomas Norstein knew this briefing was going to be a doozy. He had the entire investigation team on one side of the room, what was left of the response team on the other side of the room, and an e-mail from Takuya estimating the size of the threat with vague descriptions of some of the attacking Digimon and aggressive use of question marks. Tai stood behind him, trying to read the e-mail over his shoulder. To make it worse, he had no idea how much time they had to get to the other castle.

"To be honest, we don't have a great idea what they'll be up against," Thomas declared.

"Takuya and Koji are already over there though," said Takato. "Plus all those troops we didn't kill. That's a good start, right?"

"Yes, but if it's threatening enough to make Takuya ask for help, it's serious. Normally I'd mobilize the entire response team for this, but there's only three of you now."

"I'll go," Mikey said. "I'd love to help."

Thomas nodded. "Thank you. But I'm leery of sending all eight of you out at once. I don't want to be exposed back here, especially with the rise in activity."

"Marcus and them are still here."

Takato cringed. "They really need a break after that last fight."

"I agree. Algomon took a lot out of them," Thomas said.

Nene tentatively raised a hand. "If it's all right, I wouldn't mind staying behind."

"If you don't mind lending Sparrowmon to Mikey, I suppose that's acceptable." Thomas had no conviction in his voice.

"If they have as much trouble getting into the castle as we did, we'll be fine," Nene explained. "It's just that I've been helping Matt with his music. It seems to be helping him in his recovery." Her eyes cheated up towards Tai.

Tai caught them and nodded back. "Oh yeah? That's good to hear. If that's the case, yeah, I wouldn't mind Nene staying."

Ewan's head perked up. "Oh, I'm helping too. We're starting a band." Nene nodded in confirmation, her smile growing.

With a half-smile, Thomas shook his head. "All right. I'm probably worried over nothing. We're still sending six, Takuya and Koji have all their spirits and if worst comes to worst there's always Imperialdramon."

"Sounds like a plan then," Tai said. "Oh and Cody, why don't you and Mikey start tunneling through that hill when you're done? We can't wait any longer to finish that track." Both of them nodded.

"All right then. We're wasting time. Let's move out immediately," Thomas ordered.

Everyone save the Amano siblings stood up, most joining Davis at the elevator. Ewan leaned over to Nene and said, "Well, at least your band thing's good for something." She rubbed his head.

Tai sat down with them. "So you two play then?"

Nene's grin widened. "A little. And I sang a bit here and there."

"That's really cool. You know, the way things are going with him and Sora, I was really worried Matt was going to distance himself from everybody. This is perfect for him." Tai flashed a huge smile. "Thanks so much for doing this."

"Oh, it's our pleasure!"

"Just uh..." Tai pointed at Nene. "...don't let him pick the band name. I mean it."

* * *

Outside, seven teenagers crammed into an elevator. Cody and Suzie huddled together for protection more than affection.

Davis leaned in towards Yolei. "Hey, I heard about you and Henry. What happened?" He tried to whisper, but the enclosed walls made it easy for everyone to hear.

"Jeez, Davis, you think I want to talk about that right now?" she replied. "Or ever? It was..." She looked away, accidentally finding Christopher. He shrugged. "...stupid," Yolei concluded. "We're both stupid."

"Man, I was just asking," Davis said. "Well, you know if you ever need anything..."

Yolei's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, yeah..."

"Please, Davis, there's children here," grumbled Cody.

Suzie elbowed him. "Maybe he's just being supportive. What do you think is going on?" She turned to Yolei. "But I want the dirt too; Henry won't tell me nothing."

Yolei shook her head, keeping her lips zipped. The rest of the ride was in silence. Nobody noticed Mikey staring at Yolei. He lowered his head, hiding a smile.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara guided Imperialdramon into the courtyard, hoping the newly filled ground would hold the weight of the massive creature and its occupants. With the attack imminent, being a good host was the last thing on his mind, but it was still important. He and Koji needed to demonstrate that living here permanently wasn't crazy. Two attempted sieges in a month was already an argument against that.

Of the eight humans and four Digimon disembarking Imperialdramon, Guilmon was the only one running up to greet Takuya and Koji with any warmth. With nobody else moving, Takato hesitated before following his partner. Takuya grinned and pulled Takato into a hug.

"Man, we missed you guys!" exclaimed the digidestined.

"Yeah..." The tamer chuckled awkwardly. "I love what you've done to the place. Less water."

"The flooded courtyard thing may have suited Yushima, but it didn't work for us. Only filling half of it was easier to rebuild anyway," said Koji. "How's Koichi?"

Takato shrugged. "Don't know. Seems a bit down lately. Probably misses his little brother. Oh, but he killed it running our dance last month!"

"Hey, maybe we shouldn't talk about that dance," said Mikey, stepping in. "We saw some of the attackers flying in. They're pretty close."

"Could you ID them?" asked Koji.

Face steeling, Takato answered: "Devas."

Takuya, Koji and Mikey returned blank stares. "The hell's a Deva?" asked Takuya.

"Well, they're... uh..." Takato stammered. "Okay, so you know the Chinese Zodiac? They're-"

Christopher offered a more succinct explanation: "They're a bunch of enemies and we need to wipe them out."

Takato shrugged. "Yeah, I guess that covers it. They're all Ultimate level..." He looked at his company. "...which means nothing to you guys."

"We saw at least two in the air, probably more on the ground."

With no time for an elaborate strategy session, Takuya pulled everyone together and divided the eight main units into groups- two guarding the perimeter and one fighting in the air. Suzie would guard the still-temporary drawbridge while Davis and Ken would remain inside in case of a breach.

"Remember that this time, we're defending, not attacking," Koji said. "Rule number one is don't let anything get past you. If something might, get help. Between our D-Tectors and the squawkers we can all communicate with each other. Got it?"

A nearby explosion ended the briefing early. The walls rattled and sent all of them scurrying into action. Hawkmon flew into a guard tower, joining the existing garrison and trying to find the source.

He shouted his report back to the courtyard. "If we'd like to take this battle outside the castle, we'd better get out now."

Takuya swung the drawbridge open and the perimeter groups rushed out to take guard. Yolei ran up to the parapet to join her partner and survey the battlefield. Hawkmon pointed out the five exalted beast Digimon charging down the mountainside- three on the ground, two in the air.

"Five of them up on this side!" she shouted down. Koji raised a hand acknowledging her.

As the Devas came into view, only the dragon held back while the other four continued to the charge, undaunted by the defenders. Koji wasted no time evolving into MagnaGarurumon while Takato and Guilmon bio-merged. The lone aerial unit, the tiger, veered sharply, flying over the ocean.

"That one's ours!" Takuya shouted to Mikey. Takuya and Shoutmon evolved, Mikey jumped on X5's shoulder and they pursued Mihiramon.

Koji was following his own advice and let the enemy come to him. It didn't mean he couldn't fire an early volley. "Magna Rocket!" The sheep, Pajiramon, and an enemy Antylamon ducked away from MagnaGarurumon's missile attack. Indramon stood his ground and withstood the attack.

"Horn of Desolation!" The large black horse returned a sonic boom that knocked MagnaGarurumon to his knees.

Gallantmon had his shield up and blocked it, but it left him open to shots from both Antylamon and Pajiramon's crossbow. By the time they recovered from it, Indramon was in melee range. Gallantmon barely got his spear up in time to withstand an attack. MagnaGarurumon charged in to help, but again Pajiramon and Antylamon landed open shots on him.

Another Horn of Desolation attack brought both MagnaGarurumon and Gallantmon down again. They got back up, but as Pajiramon and Antylamon prepared another range attack and Indramon bore down on them, they knew holding their ground was the most they could hope for.

* * *

Nene Amano wasn't so naive as to think her musical collaboration with Matt would have no social ramifications. Once word spread, people would start to talk, rumors would start to churn and everyone would start to wonder what was really going on. Some women would resent the natural flow of conversation. Nene was more proactive: she was going to set the record straight at the first opportunity.

She found Sora in the library stacks, stocking some incoming titles. Just the girl Nene was looking for. "Excuse me, do you have a moment? Or are you too busy?"

Sora eyed her, but didn't stop. "It depends on what I'm too busy for."

"I just wanted to talk. You don't even have to stop what you're doing."

Sora didn't. "I thought you had to respond to something."

"I talked my way out of it. Tai was happy to accommodate my work with Matt."

Now Sora paused, one eye narrowing. "He was?" She set down the pile of books in her arms.

"Oh yes, he's totally on board. It's been very therapeutic for Matt. I would love to work his brother in if he's inclined."

Sora folded her arms, her voice suddenly sharp. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well, it's come to my attention that you and Matt were together before the incident." Sora's arms unfolded and she leaned back. "I wanted to make sure things are out in the open between us so nobody's jumping to any conclusions."

The digidestined returned a slow nod. "Okay. I suppose I'm a little nervous."

Nene held a hand up. "Completely understandable. I imagine any girl in your situation would be."

"And not to be weird, but you're awfully pretty."

"And it's so easy to fall into romance here. I see Jeremy with Zoe or my brother and Mimi."

"I thought Ewan didn't like Mimi."

"Give him time." Nene winked.

"I know I should trust him, but I just don't know where he is right now." Sora sighed. "I guess I should thank you for coming to me to talk about it. I know I shouldn't assume anything. You're probably not even into him." She grinned slightly. "He's hard to deal with sometimes. I wouldn't trade him for anything, but he's not the easiest guy to manage. I bet you wouldn't be interested in somebody so... complicated."

Nene nodded. "And that's why I wanted to clear things up with you. I want to be completely open and honest in telling you that I am."

It took Sora a moment. She even nodded at first. Then her face steeled and she replied, "You are what?"

The idol continued to nod. "Interested in Matt. I was quite disappointed in my options up until now, but having spent all this time with Matt I genuinely like him and intend to pursue a relationship."

Sora recoiled. "Are you serious?! Do you have any idea what I went through waiting for him?"

Even as Sora's voice elevated, Nene remained calm. "No. But we all went through trials, and of course I sympathize. But really, how serious was it if you were with Tai as recently as last week?"

Gritting her teeth, Sora answered, "Please don't go into that. It's complicated and-"

With a hand up, Nene stopped her. "And it's none of my business, of course. Nobody's interested in your personal affairs. I'm only interested in Matt."

"But... you can't just come up to me and tell me you plan to steal my boyfriend!"

Now Nene frowned and raised a scolding finger. "That's a very... unflattering way of putting it. The whole reason I came to you is because I don't want this to become an issue between us. I'm not interested in sneaking around or putting him in a position where he feels dishonest. You know full well the pain of not knowing what's really going on with Matt." She puffed out her chest. "I want to be completely open about my intentions."

Sora shook her head angrily. "I can't believe you. I know things aren't going well between us, but that doesn't give you the right to swoop in and claim him!" She stepped forward. "And you know, I'm sure he feels the same way! He's not going to fall for you just because..." Sora trailed off and looked her opposition over. Beautiful... confident... gifted... Sora suddenly felt inferior in all three categories.

With a gentle smile, Nene said, "Sora, I've accomplished many things in my life, from my work with the Fusion Fighters to my career to my time here. I owe my achievements to many different things- natural ability... hard work... and yes, sometimes I've had to be underhanded or associate myself with questionable characters." Picking up her head, and with more bravado, she added, "Through all of this, the one thing that's held true, the one thing that you need to understand above anything else..."

As Nene's smile widened, she clasped her hands. "In the end, I get what I want. And I want Matt."

* * *

Christopher Aonuma watched his team patrol its side of the castle with suspicion. While Koji and Takato had their hands full with the onslaught on one end and Suzie covered the front gate, the other two sides were eerily quiet. The back of the castle gave way to a seaside cliff immediately and offered no hope of entry. That left one final front. It was close enough to the woods that something could try to sneak up on them (it had been the entrance to their tunnel in the attack). But while Christopher heard the struggle on the other end and saw Mihiramon giving Shoutmon X5 fits, the Blue Flare army got nothing.

"Something's not right here," Cody said, echoing Christopher's thoughts. "Why would they plow head on down one side and not send in anyone to come around this way?"

"Why would they only send an army of five? If they guarded the entrance and took care of the aerial guy, those two might have handled it themselves."

"Hey, Cody?" Armadillomon nudged his partner. "Looks like part of our hole's still here. Might if I pop in and have a listen?"

Cody nodded, but asked, "Listen to what?" Armadillomon dug through the clump of dirt used to fill their tunnel. A few feet down, he stopped and kept his ears close to the earth.

"Picking up vibrations?" Christopher asked.

"Not with your yammering, I'm not," Armadillomon called back. "This isn't my specialty."

"Then let's call someone who is." Christopher held out his Fusion Loader. "Reload- Dracomon!"

Dracomon dropped into the hole and pressed his ears to the dirt. After only a few seconds, he reported, "It's faint, but there's definitely something around here. Whatever it is, it's moving fast." He listened in again. "Hmm... I think it's changing direction. It's getting louder."

"Yeah, now I can hear it," Armadillomon said. "Is it me, or it it heading our way?"

"Keep listening. See if you can get a location." Cody kept his eyes peeled on the woods ahead of him.

"It's getting closer!" Dracomon shouted.

"Christopher, you might want to get your guys together and digifuse..." Cody stopped and looked around. Christopher was nowhere in sight. "Christopher?"

"Incoming!"

Trying to keep his eyes steeled on the woods, Cody helped both Dracomon and Armadillomon out of the hole. He was ready to evolve his partner when the earth shook and he was thrown to the ground.

Armadillomon got up first and looked down into the hole. He got there in time to see the monster burrow past him, straight to the castle wall. They had no idea how much of their breach had been repaired, but it certainly wasn't solid stone anymore.

"What was it?" Cody asked.

"Whatever it was, it just got past us."

Sandiramon crashed through the boarded-up hole and reached the lower level of the castle. He stopped to revel in his success. "I'm in," he hissed to himself.

"Zeke Flame!"

Christopher stood in the basement hallway next to ZekeGreymon. He grinned as he watched the white snake Deva's incineration. "You're in something all right."

* * *

Mikey Kudo knew their formation wasn't optimal. From atop the castle wall, he could see MagnaGarurumon and Gallantmon struggling against three Devas, with none of the usual garrison army strong enough to make a dent against them. Meanwhile, Mihiramon pulled Shoutmon X5 and EmperorGreymon into a wild chase over the ocean. Aquilamon stayed behind for when the tiger tried a return trip.

They flew so far Mikey began to lose sight of them. Enough to shout, "Pull back, you're getting out of range!" Shoutmon X5 got the message and both he and Takuya changed course and flew back. Mikey's partner stayed with Aquilamon to await Mihiramon's inevitable return. EmperorGreymon returned to the castle and landed next to Mikey.

His D-Tector crackled with Koji's voice: "Dammit, I hate to say it but I think we need help down here. We're getting flooded."

EmperorGreymon smiled and replied, "You know I'm not letting you live this down."

"Yeah, yeah, just get someone down here."

"Go on," said Mikey. "Mihiramon's just trying to distract us." EmperorGreymon leaped off the wall and joined the fray below.

Mikey had no reason to think it wouldn't make a difference, but all the same he still wasn't satisfied. The trio of Devas below were positioned perfectly and using their abilities well. From his vantage point, Mikey both admired and feared it. The one inefficiency in their strategy was beyond them. The dragon hovered well beyond everybody, watching carefully. Either he refused to intervene or he saw no need to. Mikey surmised he was the leader.

If anything would spur Majiramon into action, it would be the fall of one of his ground units and surely it would be sudden and devastating. Mikey knew he had the opportunity to head it off. He could make sure none of his allies were caught off guard. He could even potentially end the game, taking out the enemy king before any knights were lost. He just needed an opening.

"Incoming!" Yolei shouted. Mikey turned his attention back to the ocean. Mihiramon was charging back at them. Yolei was about to give the command to attack but Mikey stopped her.

"Hold up, we got this." Mikey stared intently at Shoutmon X5, confident his partner had the same strategy in mind.

As Mihiramon flew full speed at them, Shoutmon X5 started into an attack. But Mihiramon was ready for it, stopping instantly, spinning and whipping his armored tail while Shoutmon X5 was vulnerable in the middle of his attacking motion.

At least he thought X5 was in the middle of his motion. Really, he was just charging up. Shoutmon dashed around the tiger and launched into his real attack: "Atomic Uppercut!" It connected, blasting Mihiramon over the castle and out of the picture.

"All right!" Mikey shouted. "Now, digi-defuse!"

Yolei's jaw dropped as Shoutmon X5 split apart. "What the hell are you doing?!"

"I'm ending this!" Mikey ordered Ballistamon, Dorulumon and Sparrowmon over the wall to support the battle down below. Shoutmon remained, digivolving on Mikey's command. The general pointed at Majiramon and grinned. OmniShoutmon rocketed towards his new target.

Mikey wasn't satisfied letting his partner fly into the decisive battle alone. He didn't know how strong Majiramon was. Knowing the stakes, it was too important to leave to chance. He jumped on Aquilamon's back and said, "Follow them!"

"Just hold on a minute!" Yolei cried.

"I'm not letting him fight alone!" Mikey tried to nudge Aquilamon forward, but he wasn't budging without his partner's consent.

"What about Mihiramon?!"

He turned to her. "Yolei, we take out the dragon, we end this fight! Are you coming?"

Yolei looked at his outstretched hand and his burning eyes. "Those weren't our orders. We don't know if-"

"We're wasting time! I'm not letting OmniShoutmon fight by himself!"

She backed away. He was set on this course and she was never going to match his intensity in her arguments. Not for somebody else's orders. She shook her head and waved Aquilamon on. "You better be right." Aquilamon lifted off and raced into the fight. OmniShoutmon had already taken a slash at Majiramon. The fight had begun.

Yolei didn't care. Koji had explicitly said not to let anything past them. She couldn't be sure if they were obeying. She ran to the other side of the castle, peering into the woods, hoping she'd see nothing.

Instead, she saw Mihiramon, back on his feet and padding up to the front door. Antylamon was the only thing standing in his way. She and Suzie stood on guard, the drawbridge closed behind them.

"How sickening that one of my brethren would fight alongside humans," Mihiramon muttered.

"I am not your brethren," Antylamon replied. "Bunny Blades!"

Mihiramon leaped over the attack and retaliated. "Samurai Tiger Tail!" His tail detached itself and whipped around, knocking Antylamon over.

It left Suzie startled and exposed, with nothing but moat behind her. She frantically called out on her squawker. "I'm gonna need help!"

Yolei raced around to see if anyone was responding. None of them had squawkers. Suzie wasn't reaching any of them. She was reaching Mikey, who had flown off and Christopher, who was inside the castle finishing off Sandiramon. Yolei ran back to the front. Mihiramon was beating Antylamon senseless. Suzie was cowering on the ground, tears in her eyes.

Finally, Yolei realized her last option. "Davis! Ken!" she called into the courtyard. "Suzie's in trouble!" They acknowledged her and started evolving Veemon and Wormmon.

She returned to Suzie's side and shouted, "Help's on the way, Suzie! Just another min-"

"Armored Tiger Tail!" She didn't have another minute. Mihiramon's tail grew spikes and smashed into Antylamon's torso. Her body converted to data instantaneously.

Suzie had already covered her eyes, unable to bear the sight of her partner being pummeled. She didn't even witness Antylamon die. Only when she heard Yolei's screaming did she look up to find Mihiramon closing in on her. She slid backwards, reaching the edge of the water. She contemplated falling in.

"Desperado Blaster!" Paildramon's attack caught Mihiramon off guard, knocking it over and sending it sprawling to the ground. A second attack finished the job.

It took another minute for the drawbridge to open and Davis and Ken to rush to Suzie's aid. "Antylamon?" she mumbled repeatedly as she watched the data of her partner float into the air and dissipate. She never saw it. It couldn't have happened. It was impossible. Even Davis and Ken weren't positive. They didn't want to accept it either. They looked up for confirmation, but Yolei was no longer on the parapet.

Another minute later, Yolei sprinted over the drawbridge, slid to the ground and scooped Suzie into her arms. Only when she felt the tears on her forehead did Suzie understand. By then, she was already crying too. Ken dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around both of them. Davis wanted to do the same. Instead he gulped, bit his lip and pulled out his D3 to send out the code purple.

A mile away, Mikey and OmniShoutmon defeated Majiramon.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 16: "Spring and a Storm"**  
Suzie's reluctance to express her feelings about Lopmon's death leads to a problematic solution. Matt learns to cope with his new partner hatching. Jeri and Koichi struggle to move on from their affair.

" _I can't promise it'll ever get better. All I know is we'll get through it."_

* * *

 **Author Notes  
** Ewan playing the trombone is a reference to the brother of Nene's voice actress Melissa Fahn, whose brother Mike is an accomplished trombonist. Melissa and Mike can be heard together (complete with inappropriate banter) on the live charity album Avenue Q Swings, where Melissa performs a jazz version of "Special."

It's never explicitly stated, but Data Squad takes place in Yokohama instead of Tokyo, making TK's description of certain landmarks from their world all the stranger.

Nene's reference to shaking hands refers to "handshake events" in the idol world where fans pay good money (or buy an obscene amount of merchandise) for the opportunity to shake an idol's hand.

While either epic or sinister depending on your feelings about this Matt/Nene development, her speech at the end is my way of trying to make some sense of her swerve into the idol business in Hunters. Quite simply, after everything she did in the Digital World, she's someone who isn't afraid to go to any means necessary to achieve her goals, no matter how random they may seem.

uPZzSjz5xrE  
B0019AVPAE


	17. 16- Spring and a Storm

**Neverworld**

 _The sky is deep and dark and eternally high._  
 _Many people think that's where you go when you die._  
 _Well I think you return to obscure._  
 _Or wherever you were before you were._  
 _But I won't let you lose yourself in the rain._  
 _\- Tally Hall, "Spring and a Storm"_

 **Episode 16**

Mikey Kudo's triumphant return to the courtyard was muted by the news of Lopmon's death. Majiramon's defeat ended nothing; the others still had to eliminate the remaining three Devas. But they did their job and held the castle. It didn't feel like a victory.

Both Cody and Takato had their arms around Suzie. Both of them glared at Mikey as he jumped off Aquilamon. Suzie was quiet, her eyes fixed on the ground as she slumped in a corner. Her breathing was slow and deliberate. Mikey ran up to her, bending over and setting his hands on his knees.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

She blinked a few times, not looking up at him. "I'll... be okay," she mumbled. Mikey sighed. Cody and Takato clutched her tighter.

"Don't let anything past you," said Koji. His voice was harsh, the anger barely being restrained. With his back to him, Mikey didn't grasp that he was the target. Still, he stood up and faced the warrior of light.

It wasn't just Koji. Takuya and Yolei glared at him too. Christopher and Ken had more sympathy in their eyes. But perhaps only because they too had once made fatal mistakes.

Only then did Mikey realize he was the target of their anger. "What? I had to do something about Majiramon. He was going to attack you the moment you got the upper hand."

"He wasn't attacking," Koji insisted. "Mihiramon was. He was your problem. You let him go."

"I was trying to finish the battle! I thought he was out of the way."

"You were wrong!" Koji stepped towards Mikey. "You screwed up and someone's dead because of it."

Mikey wanted to fight back, even if prolonging the argument would lead to Koji's hands on his collar. He was ready for that. He wasn't ready to notice the way his own hands shook. Whatever protest he could muster would do no good because he wouldn't believe them himself.

"I..." He gritted his teeth. "I was just trying to help." The shaking became uncontrollable. He ran inside the castle before anyone could notice.

As he ran in, Davis and Yushima walked out. "Is your friend all right?" Yushima asked.

"Give him space," Ken said. "Let him try to sort this out himself first."

Christopher nodded. "Ken's right. He'll be fine, but he needs to own up to this."

Davis grinned at them and said, "Wow, you two have been rooming together too long." Louder, he addressed the whole group. "Okay, so I talked to Kari. Guess what- we forgot to grab the egg."

Yushima folded his arms. "Really, that's fundamental. Commander Sampson would have your heads."

"Whatever, nobody was around. But she says we should stay for a bit to make sure nobody else attacks. They'll keep in touch. "

Davis braced for a complaint from Yolei, positive that bumming around a mostly empty castle for a few hours would earn her wrath. The others were certainly grumbling enough. But Yolei was nowhere to be found.

She ignored Ken and Christopher's advice and found Mikey sulking on the steps. "Are you okay?" she asked. It wasn't sympathetic or soothing. If anything, her tone was as harsh as Koji's.

Not that Mikey noticed. "Don't worry about me. Just make sure Suzie's hanging in there."

Yolei sneered. "I'm not asking how you're coping. I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with you."

Mikey grumbled and sneered back. "Nothing's wrong with me. You're the ones making me out to be some kind of bad guy. Are you even allowed to talk to me?"

"Dammit, Mikey!" she shouted. "You screwed up! You screwed up badly! Again! And you're mad at us?!"

He popped to his feet, suddenly furious. "It felt like the smart move! How was I to know he'd get back up?"

"Because you didn't let us go after him. That was our job. You ignored it and..." She pointed back to the courtyard. "Look, Lopmon's gone and we're upset and angry and pointing fingers. You can't blame us for that. You don't think you're responsible for what happened?"

"I don't know..." Mikey shook his head angrily, sitting back down. "But I do know I don't deserve to be treated like this. Not after everything I've done here. I beat Petaldramon. I found this castle!"

"Yeah, and look what you did to Angie and Nene!"

"Nothing happened between me and Nene!"

"Nobody believes you!" Yolei marched up close to him, dropping to her knees. "If that's what you do to your friends, why should any of us be friends with you?" Her eyes started to water. "Dammit, I'm worried about you. I'm worried about all of us. God, we've got Takuya and Koji thinking it's better off living all the way out here, and now you think you're immune to making mistakes? We can't have that here. We need to be able to trust you."

Mikey gritted his teeth. "Why do you care so much? If I'm as bad as they think I am, just throw me out here and be done with it."

"It doesn't work like that." She put a hand on his shoulder. "And I care because I saw Angie's face after you two got together. She was lost. She was breaking. Nobody deserves to be put through that. I saw Antylamon die too. Against the enemy we were supposed to fight. It almost killed Suzie too!"

Mikey shuddered, trying to shake off her shoulder. It didn't budge. Yolei continued, "But you know what else I saw? You trying to protect me even when you thought we were outmatched. Or you chasing after me when you saw how unhappy I was. And I know you're only here because you saved the world back home." She shook her head. "God, how many times did I dream about you actually visiting my room at night? That's the Mikey I need to be real."

He looked away, muttering, "That's the Mikey that doesn't make mistakes like this. I'm used to being the guy who saves the day, not messes everything up."

"You think you can't screw up just because you're Mikey Kudo? Sorry, but you did. And you need to accept it before anybody will let you move on. It happens to everybody. I messed up with Henry." She sighed. "I accept it. I don't like it, but it's my fault and I paid the price. Now it's your turn."

Mikey turned to her, shaking his head the whole time. "Fine, but will it help? If Angie won't talk to me and you guys don't respect me, what's the point?" He glanced down, putting his hand on hers before looking her in the eyes. "It's been pretty lonely the last few weeks."

Yolei leaned back, gasping as her face turned red. She couldn't take her eyes off his. She knew where this was leading, and she knew that dream would be returning to her come bedtime.

He blinked twice. "Think maybe we can own our mistakes together?"

"Mikey..." Yolei whispered. She took a deep breath, before slowly pulling the hand away. "After all of this... and after what I had to watch..." Her eyes closed. "If that's where you think I want to take this... if you think I can let this happen... there really is something wrong with you." She returned to her feet and walked away, refusing to look back.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara wanted to use the open time to show everybody how life at Isthmian Castle wasn't completely dull. Instead, he was saddled with putting together a report for Command. He tried protesting, but this was best defined as a response team operation and he did lead it, so it made enough sense. He didn't want to pick too many fights; he had to make sure Command would be there the next time he and Koji needed help.

A few hours later, Takuya saw the reason for the delay. The golden figure in the sky started as a speck but became more distinct as it drew near. Davis and Yushima stood in the courtyard and Takuya promptly joined them. He was one of the leaders of this castle, and as such he would be among the welcoming party for Tai and WarGreymon.

It didn't mean he wasn't getting in one last remark: "Hey, Agumon can still evolve all the way. Didn't know if Tai still had it in him."

Davis chuckled loudly, with a bright smile, but added, "Man, I so want to punch you right now."

They waited for WarGreymon to land. Tai jumped off, pulled his goggles down and approached the trio. Takuya grinned. "Well hey Tai, what brings you all the way out here?"

Tai took in his surroundings, a frown on his face. "Taking Suzie to Primary Village to find Lopmon's digiegg."

"Hold on, there's a Primary Village in this world?"

"It's on the other continent. Marcus pops over every few months to check up on things." Tai shrugged. "But I did want to check this place out." He turned to Yushima. "You must be Commander-General Yushima. Thomas says hi."

Yushima bowed. "Tell him he's due for a visit too. Good to meet you Tai; Takuya's said a lot about you."

"That can't be good."

"Don't worry." The old man winked. "I can read between the lines. I'm impressed with what you've done over there. Nice work."

Takuya scratched his cheek, suddenly uneasy. "Uh, so I guess we should give you a tour of the place or something."

"Sounds good," Tai replied. He took a long breath. "So... are you planning on coming back any time soon?"

"Hey, who says I have to? Besides, this place needs protecting. We can't leave."

"We'll have someone else take over. You shouldn't have to be stuck here yourself. Besides, a lot's happened while you were gone. Did you hear we found Matt and TK?"

Takuya nodded, trying to avoid eye contact with Tai. "Yeah." He looked down. "You know we spent a couple days wondering who the code purple was for."

"You really need to meet them." Tai narrowed an eye at Takuya. "You'd probably like Matt. And it seems like Koichi's been out of it the last few days. Bet it wouldn't hurt to see his brother again."

"I don't know..." Takuya shook his head. "Maybe once we get the rail line connected. That's almost done, right?"

"Uh..." Tai saw Cody approaching him. "I'll get back to you on that." He left Takuya and met the younger digidestined halfway. "Hey, Cody, how's Suzie doing?"

Cody turned back to her, sitting in the corner and staring at the castle wall. Takato kept a close eye on her. "I can't say. She's trying to hold it together but..." He shook his head. "That's what I wanted to ask you about. I know I'm supposed to work on the tunnel after this, but I don't feel right leaving her."

Tai grimaced. "Man, I want to let you stay with her, but we really need that thing finished. The whole thing with Matt and TK already pushed it back a few days."

"I'd rather not have to work alone with Mikey either."

Now Tai frowned. "Well, I don't want to hear that. I know he's not too popular right now, but you two are the only ones who can do it. We all have to work together. It's really important."

Cody lowered his head. "Is that an order?"

"What?"

"Working with Mikey." Cody looked his commander in the eye. "Are you ordering me to leave Suzie to work on this tunnel with Mikey?"

Tai took a step back. Usually this sort of thing was automatic and casual, especially with his Odaiba brethren. Still, it needed to be done. "Yes, that's an order."

Cody bowed sharply. "Yes, sir." He left without another word.

Shaking it off, Tai saw Mikey watching the conversation. "Are you still okay to work on the tunnel?" Tai asked him.

Mikey nodded quickly. "Yeah, you bet. I'm happy to help wherever you need me."

Tai returned the nod in silence as Yushima motioned to start the tour. Once he was gone, Takuya slid up to Mikey. He kept his voice low. "Sounds like someone hasn't heard about your goof today."

With half a sneer, Mikey replied, "I'm surprised you're not all lining up to tell him."

Takuya shrugged. "We all make mistakes. But hey, I gotta put the report together for Command. I can fudge it so you don't sound so horrible."

Mikey rolled his eyes. "Don't lie for me." He sighed. "But if you could maybe not call me horrible in the paperwork, it would be nice. I get enough crap back home."

"Why, what happened?"

"Turns out Angie's not a 'benefits' kind of girl."

Takuya laughed loudly. "Whoops!"

"Yeah. Glad you find it funny." Mikey shook his head, unamused. "But why help me?"

"Ever thought about joining us out here?" Takuya raised an eyebrow at Mikey. "Plenty of good rooms left, and with all of your Digimon we'd be covered for sure."

"What? Why would I want to stay out here?" Mikey looked around the empty courtyard. "I mean, yeah I'm not happy at the castle but I'm not running away. What's here?"

"A whole new continent," Takuya replied. "And a way home, possibly. Who knows? Tai refuses to explore this far. Says it's too dangerous. Maybe for him."

Mikey stared over the castle walls at the peak of a nearby mountain. He wondered what reason there would be to scale it. Because it was there wasn't good enough.

"I don't know, man. You're assuming a lot. I want to help everyone get home, but you can't just guess that the answer's over that mountain." Mikey shook his head. "Besides, after what happened today I don't want to be anywhere near this place."

He walked away from Takuya, planning to stick close to Davis and wait for the ride to his next assignment and however many days worth of angry glaring from Cody. Mikey looked at the mountaintop again. It still wasn't calling to him. But it also wasn't pushing him away.

"Hey, Takuya?" he asked.

"Yeah?"

"Ask me again some other time." The summit wouldn't be going anywhere.

* * *

Izzy Izumi held Kari close, swaying along to the slow, melancholy song playing from his laptop's speakers. It was a grim departure from their usual dates of taking dinner up to her room and having an indoor picnic on her floor. Then again, it was a grim day; neither were in the mood for anything cheerful. They just wanted to escape.

They had gone seven years without losing a partner Digimon in battle. Whether they were reborn or not, Mimi's emotional distress over losing Palmon ensured that preservation was a priority. Lopmon's death was the third in a week. None of the officers were close to Lopmon, so it wasn't as devastating as Gabumon or Patamon. It was just sad.

Communication between the two castles was more stable than it was a month ago, but it was still shaky. Dropped calls and static meant Davis needed several tries to exchange the needed information, constantly repeating news and details of the death to Kari. She powered through it, but it was torture. Once Tai took off to escort Suzie to Lopmon's digiegg personally, everyone in Command needed a break.

Kari and Izzy ended up here, letting the emotionally powerful music do their speaking for them while they held each other and tried to lift their spirits. It worked well enough for her. There were several times after hearing the news where she thought she was going to cry. She never did.

"We'll be okay," she said, chin resting on his shoulder. "It's just a bad week, that's all. I bet we go another ten years before losing another one."

"I hope so," Izzy said, eyes closed. She pulled away. He resisted for a moment, but let her sit on the bed. He turned the music off and joined her.

"This would have been a lot harder without you and Zoe." She nestled closer to him. "It's so nice to have this." Kari picked her head up, looked into Izzy's eyes for a moment before leaning in to kiss him. Her lips froze in place for several seconds before she pulled back. "This is perfect."

Izzy pushed forward, kissing her harder and pulling her in tighter. She gasped for a moment, but rode with it, gradually opening her mouth more and more and exploring his. It wasn't the first time they had made out, but every time it excited Kari to do something just the tiniest bit naughty away from her brother's eyes.

She continued it for another minute or so, relishing every moment until she felt the slight bit of pressure on her shoulders. It was gentle, but she knew what he was aiming for. Kari recoiled slightly, pulling away before she found herself on her back.

"We should get back upstairs," she said with a coy grin. "Zoe can't cover for us forever, especially with Tai and Davis both gone." He closed his eyes, nodding in understanding.

Kari stood, smoothed her skirt, and checked her hair in the mirror. Izzy remained, catching his breath while watching her. It wasn't the first time a date had ended this way. They kept it respectful and moved on silently. Neither dared talk about it. Izzy certainly wouldn't; he couldn't deny where he wanted to go, but he'd never admit it to her. Not that she couldn't already tell. Being so close to her and having this sort of unattainable urge bothered him. His motions to take it too far surely bothered her. But for as long as they treasured this arrangement, they were destined to remain silent.

* * *

Takato Matsuki found riding on WarGreymon's shoulder a lot less comfortable than he had always fantasized as a boy. The wind that ripped across his face was more noticeable than on Imperialdramon and he made the mistake of choosing to stand the whole time and couldn't switch. Furthermore, he was holding Suzie while Guilmon sat alongside Tai. This wasn't some dramatic adventure but a somber errand as they flew to Primary Village.

He only caught a glimpse of their destination before they landed in an empty field a mile away. Takato helped Suzie off before WarGreymon turned back into Agumon. Tai must have noticed Takato's puzzled expression because he explained, "Primary Village is a protected area. Don't want to draw any attention to it by flying in with a Mega." Scratching his cheek, he added, "That and Swanmon complains when we fly too close and wake the babies."

They started walking. Suzie kept pace in silence, insisting on walking on her own without support. Takato was worried she'd be a bawling mess, but this stoic, unflinching side was just as bothersome. Determined to keep their task from being too morose, but knowing talking to Suzie wouldn't help, he instead seized the chance at one-on-one time with Tai. "So when's the last time you had to bust out WarGreymon?"

"We go out and warp digivolve every so often just to make sure we have it in us," Agumon replied.

"Izzy, Kari and Thomas all do the same thing," Tai said. "Just because you guys do most of the fighting doesn't mean we can't be ready."

Takato grinned. "I suppose with Matt back you'll have to work on Omnimon someday."

"How do you know about-" Tai stopped himself. "Oh yeah, that cartoon about us?"

"That was in the movie actually." The tamer chuckled.

Tai chuckled himself. "A movie too? Wow. And all you guys could send us was Ryo?"

"Yeah. Still hoping to see Magnadramon someday."

"Who's that?"

"You know? Gatomon's Mega? From when Kari and TK went to America."

Tai's eyebrows furrowed. "Kari's never been to America."

"Oh... weird." Takato's enthusiasm still remained. "Guess we must have made that one up. That's not too crazy; it's not like they had cameras on you the whole time."

The digidestined stopped and looked down, a worried frown on his face. He let the thought go and moved on, only replying, "Yeah, you're probably right."

Their ensuing silence ended the conversation, but it wasn't long before Takato changed the subject, keeping it light-hearted with talk about books and games he and his friends were enjoying downstairs. Tai laughed along, whether or not he was interested. He knew he never spent enough time with Takato, despite him leading the first team to join them in the Digital World. For all the criticism he took from the Henrys, Mikeys and Takuyas of the world, Tai needed more Takatos.

Suzie didn't say a word the entire time.

When they arrived in Primary Village, Tai didn't see anything out of place, but something felt wrong. The digieggs were all in nests like they should have been, the surrounding structures were all bright and happy, and the grass felt bouncier and looked greener. Despite this, everything felt lifeless.

Nobody was there. The eggs all looked healthy and ready to hatch, but no guardians were around to care for them. No other babies or In-Training levels bounced around the nurseries. Agumon felt one of the digieggs. It was cold.

"How long do you think it's been like this?" Takato asked.

"It couldn't have been long," Tai said. "Marcus was just over here on the last patrol. Everything was fine." With a sigh, he turned to Suzie. "Can you sense Lopmon anywhere? Close your eyes and try to feel her presence. Or see if your digivice picks her up."

Suzie took a deep breath and did so. In the meantime, Takato picked up an egg, held it close for a while, then set it back down. Not wanting to disturb Suzie, he walked up to Tai and lowered his voice. "I don't think any of these are hatching anytime soon. I can't even tell if there's anything inside them. Kenta let me hold Punimon's egg for a bit. It was warmer. You could tell something was in there and was going to break free."

"I don't feel anything," Suzie whimpered, opening her eyes. "Not Lopmon. Not anybody."

"I'm sure she's here somewhere," Tai said. Takato and Suzie could tell he was lying.

She shook her head and faced Tai, head hung low. "You know how it works in our world, right?"

Tai's hands flew to her shoulders. "Don't think like that. We're not in your world." Aside, he muttered, "Thank God."

He looked around again while Agumon and Guilmon kept inspecting eggs for signs of life. He tried not to let on how bad this was. There were no signs of battle or conflict. There was no evidence that anyone was responsible, much less who. This felt more like disease or something else that couldn't be solved with a well-timed strike. Tai didn't know how to respond to that.

In the meantime, Suzie had no partner, and no sign of a new one. Tai couldn't imagine the pain of Agumon dying, much less permanently. Jeri walled off her feelings to all but her closest friends; even Sora, her closest co-worker, only got part of the picture. Anyone could tell Suzie was not all right, no matter how few tears she was spilling. He worried about her, to the point where he had trouble entrusting her grieving to her brother and fellow tamers.

"Let's go," Tai said. No matter how desolate the place looked, there was nothing they could do themselves. This was a matter for Keenan or the investigation team to pursue. He just wanted to go home. There, two eggs were on the verge of hatching. It was the encouraging sight he needed.

"Somebody's home in this one," Guilmon announced before Tai could warp digivolve Agumon. Tai and Takato ran up to inspect the egg. It was at the edge of the patch, distant from the others. Tai felt it; unlike the other digieggs in the village, this one was warm. He could feel the energy in the shell. This was a healthy specimen certain to hatch.

It didn't give Tai any hope as he scanned the shell for markings. There were none: the digiegg was solid black.

* * *

Rika Nonaka desperately wanted to win this battle. The stakes were more a matter of pride than anything, but that made it important enough to her. She barked more orders at Renamon than normal, bouncing on her feet, shuffling to get a better angle on the fight. Renamon should have had the upper hand as always, but Rika cringed as Agumon sniffed out a maneuver and slashed Renamon across the chest.

"That's it! Now don't let up!" Marcus shouted. Agumon pounced on the fox and landed a few more blows.

Balling her hand into a fist, Rika gritted her teeth. All of Renamon's advantages disappeared when she was on the defensive. No orders or encouragement was going to help here. Rika needed to act. She pulled a card from her holster and cried, "Digi-Modify!"

"Hey, you can't do that!" Marcus ran up to her. "We said keep them at this level!"

"It's just a power-up. You didn't say-"

"That's cheating and you know it! If you can do that I might as well make him digivolve."

Rika's eyes narrowed. "You punch her, you die."

Their argument got so loud it distracted the actual combatants. Renamon and Agumon glanced at their partners. Agumon struggled to keep Renamon pinned to the ground. "We should let them sort this out first," Renamon said.

Agumon nodded and hopped off her. "I didn't slash too close to your neck, did I?"

"I'll live."

Ken had only heard they were outside the castle. The bickering led him the rest of the way. They were too engrossed in their debate to notice him, so he stopped to watch her. In a way, her mannerisms and fire were foreign. She was rarely this intense around him. He could never raise her temper same way Marcus could. Yet he couldn't help but smile; he found this side of her just as beautiful as the side she showed him.

Once they seemed to settle down, Ken approached them, Wormmon perched on his shoulder. By that time, Agumon had ceded all of the momentum prompting Rika's move in the first place, so they essentially started the fight over with a clearer understanding of the ground rules. Rika was still seething when she spotted Ken. Instinctively, she blushed.

"W... what are you doing here?"

Ken frowned, refraining from the hug he was planning to give. "I heard you were out here. I... just wanted to see you."

Still coming down from her arguing, she asked, "Is Suzie all right?"

"I don't know. She's with Tai and Takato. We were all pretty devastated though." Ken looked down. This was the real reason he sought her out; the death of anyone's partner Digimon was bound to hit him hard. After a long trip home he just wanted to collapse in someone's arms.

"Yeah. Bad that we lost another one, especially Lopmon." Despite her clear sympathy, the fight resumed and Rika returned to her shouting. Ken and Wormmon sat back and watched her go.

"She seems pretty distracted," said Wormmon.

"That's all right," Ken replied. "I can wait." Despite her ignoring him, he smiled.

After a few more minutes of sparring, Renamon somersaulted over a charging Agumon, grabbed his neck and hurled him to the ground. She stood on his legs with one hand on his neck, the other pinning his arm down. After his attempt to scratch his way out with the other arm failed, he gave.

Marcus moaned in dissatisfaction while Rika clapped, smirking as she forced her way into his line of sight. "That's what you get for thinking you can take us. Guess who gets to carry my pack next week?"

Ken waited patiently for her to finish her gloating before Marcus retreated. Rika finally met him only after reveling in the victory with Renamon. "Congratulations," Ken said. "What would have happened if he'd won?"

"I would have had to wear his goggles for a week." She scoffed. "He'd probably be all into that. The pervert."

He had to look away. In truth, Ken found the thought of Rika wearing goggles irresistibly cute and he very much wanted to see it. He recovered in time to say, "So are you free now? Because-"

"Well, first Renamon and I need to celebrate."

"And get some ointment," Renamon added, rubbing her chest.

"We can hang out later, okay?" Rika didn't give him a chance to answer, racing back to the castle with her partner instead.

"I'm free to hang out," Wormmon suggested.

Ken frowned. Despite badly wanting her company, he didn't mind this too much. After all, she'd be free at some point and have plenty of time for him. He still couldn't help but be charmed by her fiery, moody, aggravating side. He just wondered why she only seemed to show it around Marcus.

* * *

Tai Kamiya didn't return to the castle until the next morning. WarGreymon wasn't as swift as Imperialdramon and needed the occasional break. By the time they arrived, so did Tai. While Koromon returned to the habitat and Henry and most of the tamers met Takato and Suzie at the gate, Tai was determined to check in with Command, then promptly get some sleep.

As he crossed the hall to Wizard Keep, a sprinting Angie crashed into him. They both fell over. Angie's face flushed. "C... Commander! I'm so sorry!"

Tai stood up and helped her to her feet. "Tai. My name is Tai. You shouldn't run like that. Where are you going?"

She panted. "Medical... h... h... hatching!"

His eyes widened as every thought of sleeping vanished. He grabbed her hand and sprinted to Leo Tower. Inside the medical facility, Matt and TK were seated with their digieggs on their laps. Joe watched them closely. "Oh, just in time!" he said, directing them to join Kenta and Nene next to Matt.

"No way am I missing this," Angie joined a smiling Kenta.

Tai stood by them as well, but raised an eyebrow at the company. "Why are you here, Nene?"

With a smile, Nene answered, "Moral support." Tai shrugged.

"As long as we don't crowd them, it's fine," Joe said. "Give them space. Won't be long now."

Indeed, TK's egg was already cracking. Tai watched the process carefully, imagining it could have a clue as to what was happening at Primary Village. Surely it was a matter for Izzy to research, but the idea of rebirth now fascinated Tai more.

"Come on... just a bit more..." TK rubbed the shell, encouraging Poyomon on. Matt was frozen, staring down at the data that used to be Gabumon with confusion. Even so, Punimon started to break free. But not before Poyomon's shell disintegrated, leaving a healthy translucent blob that TK immediately cradled.

"Oh... he is cute!" Angie said, rubbing her eyes.

TK cried too, but wore a calm smile as he held Poyomon up to his cheek. His eyes opened and found Kenta and Angie. "Thanks guys. Wanna hold him?"

"Uh, not yet," Joe said. "Let him get used to you first."

While the attention was on Poyomon, Matt was still struggling. Punimon was definitely hatching, but he wasn't sure how he was supposed to react. A reassuring hand on his shoulder only helped so much.

"Close your eyes. Let it happen," said Nene.

He did. He kept them closed until he felt the shift in weight. When he opened his eyes, the little red ball was waiting for him. Matt felt the connection instantly; his gut told him this was Gabumon, and Punimon stared back intently, begging Matt for leadership. But Matt saw something completely foreign, and no matter how soon it would be before it became Tsunomon and Gabumon again, he was starting over. All his years of bonding and fighting together were wiped away and replaced with something so fragile.

Matt looked at all the faces happy to see Punimon. Even TK was smiling back, ready for him and Poyomon to give it another go. Matt wasn't ready. He saw Punimon only as a reminder of everything he had lost. It was too much. When Nene leaned in to poke the red blob, Matt dumped him in her hands and ran out.

"Matt, you shouldn't-" Joe couldn't scold him in time. Before anyone else could, Nene ran after him.

Tai thought about going after him too, but he had no idea what the problem was and doubted he'd have anything comforting to say. He reasoned Nene would have just as much of a chance of getting through.

Instead, he turned to TK. The younger brother was concerned about Matt, but Poyomon's presence seemed to calm him. Tai leaned in closer and said, "Hey TK, you seem to be hanging in there okay."

TK looked surprised. "Hm? I guess. It's nice holding him again. It's still hard, but I think I'll be all right."

"Look, I know this is asking a lot, but you heard what happened to Lopmon, right?"

"Yeah." Frowning, TK said, "That's what the purple screen on my digivice meant, huh?"

"I was wondering if you could maybe talk to her partner. Suzie's..." Tai sighed. "I'm worried about her. She's trying to act brave like this isn't a big deal to her, but..."

"It is." TK nodded. "She's afraid to let it out?"

"Maybe Henry will have better luck, but either way, maybe you can help her. She can't just keep it in. She'll break. I mean, we all get how painful it has to be. And too many of us have gone through the same thing."

With a smile, TK replied, "I'd be happy to. I was hoping I could find some way to help around here."

"Good to hear. Thanks, TK." Tai smiled back.

Suddenly, TK squinted. "Suzie's the Chinese girl, right?"

* * *

Nene Amano found Matt leaning over the bridge between the tower and the main building. She thought about placing her hand on his, but did one better: she put Punimon on the railing and let him bounce up to his new partner. Matt didn't recoil this time.

"You can write a hundred songs about it, but at some point you have to accept this is happening," she said.

"I really lost everything," he muttered. "No matter what's happened before, I always had Gabumon with me." He stroked Punimon's head. "Everything we went through and this is all that's left."

"Don't think of it like that. You can't spend all your time looking at him and thinking about what you lost." She patted his wrist. "Think about the new memories you'll make."

He stared at his new partner. Punimon acknowledged his partner, ready for anything.

Nene took his hand and slid closer. "Think of it as a fresh start. No matter how bad it was, it's over now. You're starting over."

"I didn't want to start over." Matt's hand balled into a fist. Nene clasped her other hand around it.

"I know. Of course you didn't. But at least now you can shape your life however you want to. You can do anything." She glanced at Punimon. "You and your partner can become anything." Finally, she pulled his hand close to her chest and looked into his eyes. "You can be with anybody."

She saw the hurt in his eyes, but also the hesitation. With one hand, Nene reached for Punimon, who jumped in her hand faithfully. She held him up to Matt, letting him jump on his shoulder. "I know he's not the partner you're used to, but give him a chance. In time, I'm sure he can be just as wonderful as Gabumon was."

Matt looked at him up close. Punimon's nose nuzzled his cheek. "And who knows, maybe even more." He found Nene's eyes again. "Whatever caused you pain before... it's okay to let it fall. You have a clean slate. The choices are all up to you now." She smiled weakly, stroking his hand. "What would you like to do, Matt Ishida?"

She wasn't sure if the hesitation was leaving him. He moved slowly, cautiously, but forward nonetheless. So did she, and her lips were right there to meet his. He pulled away from the kiss after a few moments, but only to take a few breaths before going in for a second. A third followed. His hand clasped the back of her neck. And when she felt all the tension ease away from him she knew she had what she wanted.

While Matt and Nene focused on each other, Tai walked past them. He saw the whole thing. He knew this was not part of the plan. He recognized everything it meant. But he kept walking without a word. It wasn't that he approved. Part of him was sickened by the sight. But Tai had seen too much heartbreak over the last few days to accept more. He was going to pretend he didn't see it and move on, once again longing only to check into Command and get some sleep.

* * *

Jeri Katou had gotten used to fighting off the pain through her work. Losing Koichi, followed by two partner Digimon, hit her hard. The added work that came with integrating Matt and TK helped her ignore it. Now Lopmon, one of her own teammates, was gone and it was getting harder to bear. Even her job offered no respite now that the river had delivered the flowers for a scheduled memorial service. Now she had to put together an arrangement to honor three fallen Digimon. Her mind was on nothing else, and she struggled not to crack.

Worse yet, Sora insisted on silence when putting them together- something from her formal training in proper flower arranging. For someone who insisted she didn't like how the craft was pushed on her, she was both very serious about it and very good at it. While nobody expected anything fancy, Sora was delivering anyway and it made Jeri's piece seem sloppy by comparison. Jeri compared the two constantly, her hands shook with uncertainty, all the while feeling devastated for Suzie. With no sign of an egg, Jeri knew what was ahead for the young tamer. She thought about trying to help her through it, but she couldn't. She wasn't through it herself. She never would be.

This was why she needed Koichi. Takato shared her grief, of course, but he was too eager to fight on. She wasn't strong enough for that, but forced herself to fake it for his sake. Koichi would have embraced her, soothed her, and let her stop and stay stopped until she was ready. When Takato left to defend Isthmian Castle, she wanted to turn to Koichi several times. She held back not because he was adamant about staying apart, but out of fear that Rika would spot them. She never found her solace, and Takato only returned with more to cry about.

As her focus slipped, so did her hand. Instead of trimming a stem, she snapped it off completely, taking a white blossom down with it. "Oh no!" she exclaimed.

Her outburst startled Sora, who pulled her hands back in time to avoid damaging her creation. "Sorry," Jeri said. "My hand slipped." She slumped over. "I'm not very good at this."

Sora shook her head. With a reassuring tone, she said, "Oh I'm sure you're doing..." Once she saw Jeri's work, she was physically unable to spit out the rest. She ended up with, "I'll fix it later."

Sitting up to give her legs a break, Jeri whimpered. "How can you do it so well?"

"A lot of practice and the pressure of generations of family tradition." Sora stared at the wall, simmering. "But thank you for noticing. I'm proud of it, even if it's not as appealing as..." She paused, looking aside. "...I don't know, being an idol singer."

"That's awfully specific."

Whatever remained of the peaceful energy in the room left when Mimi threw the door open. "Jeri? I know you're busy, but that cake mold I asked for wasn't in any of the boxes." She pouted. "I hope you didn't forget it."

Jeri's body stiffened. "Cake mold? I swear I ordered that. I did it as soon as you asked."

Sora turned around and sifted through Jeri's desk drawer. "Everything checked out this morning." She found the paper she wanted and scanned the many pages carefully. "Is it that important? You make cakes all the time."

"I was going to make a smaller one just for Matt and TK... oh, and Suzie too, I guess."

Frowning, Sora handed the order form to Jeri. "It's not listed. It must not have gotten entered."

"But I... I know I did." Jeri shook her head and checked again. It still wasn't there. She looked up at Mimi, lowering her head and fighting off tears. "I'm so sorry. I'll put it in right now. Maybe it can be rushed. I'm sorry I ruined your idea."

Mimi continued to frown at Jeri, exhaling a couple times as the hospitality director dreaded what would come next. Only after several seconds did Mimi chuckle, grin, and say, "It happens! I'll figure something else out. Don't worry about it. I'll let you get back to work."

It didn't make Jeri feel any better, even after Mimi left. "It's okay. She's not mad," Sora assured her.

Jeri marched to her computer and put the order in immediately. She wanted to know she did it and she wanted Sora to witness it. "There. It's in." She even printed out the confirmation.

"It's really not a big deal. You missed one thing. As long as the important stuff arrived, it's fine." Sora sighed. "We've all been through a lot lately. I know we shouldn't let it affect our work, but it just happens from time to time." She stared at her flower arrangement. "It's hitting me too."

Jeri returned to her mess of a piece. She had no desire to finish it. With Koichi gone, her work had been her only escape from the pain. Now even that was falling victim to it.

* * *

Suzie Wong was determined to weather the storm. Losing a partner Digimon tested resolve more than any other trial imaginable. She saw first hand how it unraveled Jeri. Palmon's death took away Mimi's will to fight. Once she recovered from the shock, Suzie was determined not to be like that. She was going to prove she belonged. Nobody was going to see her cry.

The memorial Lopmon was hastily thrown into would be Suzie's hardest test. There would be pictures honoring the dead (she joked to herself that Lopmon's would be culled from the Odaiba Day picture honoring those NeoMyotismon killed). There would surely be a place for the reborn Punimon and Poyomon. There would be a eulogy about how brave a friend Lopmon was, and how she abandoned her trademark inclination for reverence and subordination to protect a strange little girl. They would bring up her unlikely evolution to fight D-Reaper, how she saved everyone fighting Petaldramon, and even her cute quirks like the mischief Terriermon would drag her into or the way she insisted on calling Shoutmon "sire."

"Are you okay?" Henry asked over lunch. The thought alone nearly sent her into tears. She would have none of that. She was a big girl, no matter how much her brother prodded her. Every time, he seemed to hope she'd crack.

"Hey, Suzie?" Now TK was approaching her, Poyomon perched on his shoulder. "Can we talk for a bit?"

This was the first time since the initial meeting TK had spoken to her. Still, it got her away from Henry. "Sure," she answered.

She left her brother and followed TK outside. He seemed to know where he wanted to go, but wasn't speaking. Finally, she stopped. "What's going on? You said you wanted to talk."

"We're finding someplace quiet," TK said. "Let's talk about what happened."

Suzie didn't budge. "Why? I'm fine! Why won't anyone listen to me?"

"Because you're not." TK shook his head. "I understand- you're the team baby. You want to prove you aren't just a burden. That you're just as brave as the others. When something like this happens..." He reached up and stroked Poyomon. "...there's no point. It only hurts for longer."

Suzie gulped. She did not interrupt him again.

They ended up in the train platform. It still needed finishing touches, but the infrastructure was secure and, more importantly, it was empty. TK stopped in the middle of the cave, silent for a moment.

"Now what?" Suzie asked.

"Let it out," he replied. "You're sad, you're angry, you're whatever. Be what you want. Your brother and your friends won't hear you. It's just me. And believe me, I know what you're going through."

She still tried to resist, but one glimpse of Poyomon forced out a disgusted snort. "No you don't. Your partner's right there. He comes back. Every time. I'm not so lucky."

TK looked at the blob on his shoulder. Maybe bringing him wasn't a good idea.

"You wanna know a secret?" Suzie asked. "Some of us tamers? We were actually happy to end up here." TK gasped. "I mean it. Compared to back home, we'd be willing to end up stuck here if it meant we could be with our Digimon." She sighed. "I just wanted to see Lopmon and Terriermon again... and now...

"My family... my friends... everything I loved doing... it could all go away as long as I had Lopmon. Everything was bearable. With her, we could do whatever we wanted. I didn't care how long we were here because we didn't need to say good..." She paused, suddenly getting choked up.

TK set Poyomon aside and reached forward. Before he could offer any reassurance, she fell to her knees, shaking uncontrollably. "Now what? She's gone... she's gone for good."

"You don't know-"

His attempt to offer any hope went ignored. "We're going to be here forever and I'm never going to see her again." She fell forward, now in a crouch as her tears fell onto the stone floor. "What do I do now? What do I have to look forward to? I wanted to help fight so badly... I was so happy... now I'm trapped in here for the next infinity years. What's the point?"

She buried her head, tears pouring out. TK closed his eyes; agonizing as it was to watch, this needed to happen. These were her true feelings hiding behind the stoicism she used to try to fool everybody else. It wasn't far from the raw pain he wished he had the chance to express.

It only grew worse. The sobbing gave way to screaming as she grasped the reality of every happy possibility in her future being ripped away from her. It didn't cease; given the opening, it poured out. TK was on the verge of crying himself. She was right: no matter how much he grieved over losing Patamon, in the back of his mind he always knew it was never truly goodbye. What she was going through was truly unimaginable.

Finally, he couldn't handle it anymore, fell himself and clutched her. She didn't let up and he didn't want her to. Someone needed to hold her. TK needed to hold her to keep himself from losing it. Her wailing continued, but he just held her tighter and waited it out. He didn't care how long it took. He didn't care how red his eyes got. He didn't care that her convulsions jerked his body in every direction.

Six minutes of pure agony only subsided when Suzie ran out of breath and tears. She was left panting, shaking, and hunched underneath TK. He stroked her back. "Suzie... I can't promise it'll ever get better. All I know is we'll get through it. If there's anything you don't want to share with your brother or your friends... find me." He struggled to control his own breathing. "Anytime you need to let it out. I'm here."

She didn't respond at first, but slowly rose to her knees, twisting her body to face him. His arms were still around her, but now she was pulling him into a hug. With her head on his shoulder, she took several deep breaths. Finally, she was able to utter a single "thank you."

Suzie pulled back to look TK in the eyes. She was still a wreck; by now he wasn't in much better shape. "You were right. I needed this," she whispered. They stared at each other for too long. They both moved in for the kiss at the same time. It was deep, intense, and neither wanted to be the first to let go.

She gave first, snapping back and looking at him with some worry in her eyes. But rather than dwell on it, she returned to his shoulder, and the momentary peace it brought. Nothing else was on her mind.

* * *

Koichi Kimura couldn't hide any longer. He had spent most of the last few days alone, unable to muster the energy to do anything outside food runs and requested appearances like his team's initial meeting with Matt and TK. His position allowed this: with no upcoming events, he had no function in the castle. The memorial service for the three fallen Digimon forced him to work. The subject matter didn't cheer him up.

Leaving Jeri was necessary. Her indecisiveness was leading them down a dangerous path that was bound to end badly. Rika finding out confirmed it. The way he saw it, the sooner they ended it, the sooner they could move on with limited damage. Except as much as he feared the scorn they'd get, he never thought about his own feelings.

Jeri had been the happiest thing in his life. They were bonded together in a way that felt almost spiritual. Ending it the way he did felt unnatural. Everything else in his life felt fake. Koji had been gone for more than a month, and only now did Koichi begin to truly miss him. For the first few weeks, Jeri had proactively reassured him: he could afford to be without Koji because he had her.

His other friends didn't have any solace to offer. JP and Zoe had become so tightly wrapped around Jeremy that it was hard to pick out the true third wheel among them. Joining them would have left no doubt. Koichi couldn't stand to be around Takato any more. No matter how much the tamer stood by him and encouraged him, Takato was the victor without ever realizing there was a contest. Now that he was no longer sharing Jeri, Koichi felt bitterness and jealousy towards Takato. He refused to let anyone see it.

He barely registered JP when he asked, "Are the chairs good like this or should we do something special?" As always, he and Jeremy were Koichi's event minions. They had more opinions on how the memorial should be arranged than he did. Koichi shook his head and didn't disturb them.

"Wow, check it out!" Zoe wheeled in the flower arrangements on a cart. "Sora did a really nice job on this one!"

Jeremy hoisted Sora's creation onto the stage, careful to position it in as prominent a place as possible. Once set, he stood back and admired it. "You can tell she's learned from the masters. The elegance... the symmetry... the use of color. It tells a story!"

JP scoffed. "Don't pretend you know anything about flower arranging."

Folding his arms, Jeremy stood up straight. "As a kendo master, it's my duty to have an appreciation for all the Japanese arts. I have a deep respect for ikebana!"

Zoe giggled. "You are such a dork."

Koichi ignored their cheerful banter, instead focusing on placing the second arrangement on the other side of the three framed pictures. "Oh, you want to put that one up front too?" JP asked. Koichi didn't notice how unpolished it was compared to Sora's.

Pointing at it, Zoe said, "You can tell Jeri did that one." Koichi nearly dropped it.

"That's cruel, Z," JP replied.

Whether it was true, Koichi suddenly saw it in a new light. It didn't have the same trained skill or care as Sora's piece. Up close, he could see it falling apart. He didn't care. He still found it appealing and left it in place.

"This is fine," he declared. The others weren't listening; JP and Jeremy were ganging up to needle Zoe's lack of politeness.

"Guys?" Koichi said, louder. This time he got their attention. "You know, this is a memorial service. Maybe we shouldn't be joking around so much."

JP shrugged. "Well, this is what they get trusting this to four people who don't actually have Digimon partners."

Jeremy and Zoe had to cover their mouths to not burst into laughter. "Now who's cruel?!" Zoe exclaimed. Koichi sighed and sat down as the three continued to goof around.

He didn't notice JP face him until he heard, "You okay, Koichi?" Koichi looked up. Suddenly his old teammates were worried. "You've been kinda out of it lately. Missing Koji or is something else going on?"

"It's... nothing." Koichi looked down.

JP grinned. "You know what'll cheer you you up? I think we're long overdue for a a B-Team party!"

Zoe's face lit up. "Oh, yeah! How long's it been?!"

"A what?" Jeremy asked.

"Well, Takuya and Koji did all the heavy lifting on our team, so us three and Tommy bonded over how useless we ended up. We get together once in a while and go out for our own adventure. You're welcome to join us."

"Sure sounds like you qualify." JP winked. "Heck, invite Angie too! Besides, we don't have our spirits so we'd need you guys to steal a Digimon from Chris or Nene..."

With a huff, Koichi stood up. "Thanks, but I'm not really in the mood. I'll... see you later." He rushed out. Unhealthy as it he knew it was, he was in no mood to let anyone force him to cheer up.

* * *

Sora Takenouchi did her best to stay focused on the ceremony. Yes, it was lovely: Agumon, Gatomon and Terriermon all delivered outstanding speeches honoring the three losses. The decorations, the music, the moment of silence... it all did Patamon, Gabumon and Lopmon justice. None of it stopped her from frequent glances down the row of chairs and questions about how Nene ended up sitting next to Matt.

On his other side, TK didn't seem to notice or care. The younger brother leaned more towards Suzie. Their arms brushed and he would occasionally pat her hand. She would occasionally cast an eye on him; once she even cracked a smile. Sora noticed this, but didn't pay as much attention. She was more paranoid looking for clues about Matt and Nene to worry about anyone else getting too close.

The ceremony ended with Tai, Davis and Thomas presenting the three framed pictures on the stage to Matt, TK and Suzie. The three survivors received them with a nod and a shoulder pat. Sora remained seated as others filed in to pay their respects. Hanging back behind Matt, Nene waited patiently. She whispered something to Kari, who nodded with a faint smile.

Once the crowd thinned, Suzie's shoulders slumped. TK put his hands on them, pulling her into a hug. It calmed her; she didn't mind when he stroked the back of her head. These were the sort of clues Sora was looking for in Matt and Nene. But to do that, she would have to follow them out of the hall. With a hand on his back, Nene led him towards Ophani Tower. Sora kept her distance, but was determined to see where the two stood.

She was too far away to hear them, but she learned everything she needed. Nene took Matt's hands. She spoke to him gently and to his face. Matt nodded along, squeezing her hands as she reassured him about something. Sora's fist clenched as she watched the two stare at each other, then move in for the kiss. Hand in hand, they continued towards Ophani Tower. Matt's room was in Ophani Tower.

Sora didn't wait for a breakdown. She ran to Wizard Keep, up the stairs, and into her room. Yes, it was destroying her, but she wasn't giving anyone else the satisfaction of witnessing it. She would stew alone for as long as she needed, then find something productive to throw herself at. Anything to take her mind off the realization that she had wasted nine years hoping to see someone who didn't care to see her.

She didn't respond to the knock on her door. Nothing she was worrying about was anything she cared to share. But the knocking persisted and Tai said, "Sora? You all right?"

"Leave me alone, Tai," she answered.

Tai didn't leave her alone. In fact, he opened the door with an all-access key and let himself in. "You saw them too, huh?" he asked.

"Don't act like you had nothing to do with it," she said, sneering. "You were okay with him wanting a break. You apparently loved the idea of them starting a band."

"I didn't think he'd do this!" Tai exclaimed. "Jeez, I was just trying to help him get back on track. I didn't think he'd go this far. This is all on him! And Nene I suppose." He leaned against the door, folding his arms.

"Nene told me she'd be going after him. Said it to my face." She sighed. "Guess she did."

"I don't know, when I saw them yesterday..."

"You saw them yesterday?" Now Sora was even angrier. "And you just let it happen? You didn't say anything?"

"This isn't my problem!" he shouted. "I don't need this right now!" Tai frantically paced around the room. "My problems are losing three Digimon in a week. And Primary Village is a mess and we don't know what's going on. I don't know if Takuya and Koji ever plan on coming home. Jeez, even Cody's pissed at me!"

"Cody?"

He shrugged. "He wanted to be here with Suzie, but we needed that other tunnel finished."

Sora looked down. "He should have been here today. Although she did seem to be getting pretty close to TK." She chuckled. "At least that's not your fault."

Tai frowned. "It might be. I did ask TK to help Suzie process all this."

"I'm sure you didn't ask him to take that approach... although this is TK we're talking about."

He sat on the bed, careful to stay a respectful distance from her. "Getting them back was supposed to be the last piece of the puzzle. I thought everything would be fine." He shook his head. "But it's like it only blew up more. I don't know what to do anymore."

"You can't worry about us, Tai," Sora said. "You're right. This isn't your problem. I'll... figure it out. Somehow."

"It's so hard though. You two are my best friends. I don't know if I can let him keep hurting you like this."

"I'm sure he doesn't mean to." Tai recoiled, looking away. "This is just... what he wants right now." Sora hunched over. "Why wouldn't he want someone like Nene instead of someone like me?"

Tai's head shook slowly as he mumbled, "I'd take you over Nene every time."

He caught himself and sat upright instantly. Slowly, he turned to Sora. She was staring at him, mouth open, grasping for a response. Tai wasn't going to wait for it: "I shouldn't have said that."

"Tai..." She scooted closer to him.

"Sora, don't. You... you know how I feel but... what then?"

"I know..." she mumbled, still moving closer, still staring at him. "But..." Despite their protests, she kept moving forward, not stopping until their lips met.

He received it. He enjoyed it. He prolonged it for far too long. All the same, he ended it, standing up and stepping away. "We can't do this." His hand shook. "Look, I want to but... that would be it, wouldn't it?" Tai turned back. Sora's eyes were still heavy, and still desperate for any remedy. "There's no going back. Everything between all of us... it's over. You'd be throwing away any chance of being with him again."

"Maybe you're right," Sora said, keeping her voice low. "Maybe it would. But what if it's already over?"

"Don't think like that."

"I can't help it. I waited nine years for him to come back. This was supposed to be worth it. But I'm depressed... I'm miserable... I feel totally worthless." Sora unfastened the buttons on her top. "This might ruin everything I've waited for. I don't care." She pulled it off, dropped it to the floor, and waited for him to look her way. "This is what I need right now."

He couldn't take his eyes off her. Her body was inviting, her eyes pleading, her soul everything he wanted. Tai knew there was no fighting it. His pile of bad ideas was going to grow bigger.

"So do I," he said, pulling his tie off. Without another thought, he was on her.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 17: "Tear This Down"**  
In this episode, the aftermath of Tai and Sora reconnecting hits them, Matt and Nene. More missing items force Izzy to question Jeri's ability to hold her position. Cody reacts harshly to the sight of TK and Suzie together.

" _I knew you were capable of this, but never in a million years did I think you'd do it to me."_

* * *

 **Author Notes  
** Primary Village is featured in both the Adventure and Frontier worlds. Like most features of this Digital World, here it takes elements of both, including Frontier's Swanmon guardian.

While the second Adventure movie (and thanks to clarifications from tri., the second Zero Two movie as well) fits fine in the canon and are considered as such, it's a lot harder to work the events of the first Zero Two movie and so is treated appropriately. Now watch tri. throw an ill-advised reference to it.

Ikebana is the art of Japanese flower arranging that is a very important part of Sora's family in the Japanese version of the show. Elements of this have occasionally crept into the dub, and so creep up here. Some of the practices (silence, for one) are demonstrated. Jeremy's appreciation for it is a reference to how he can live in Japan yet demonstrate himself to be a complete weeaboo on several occasions.

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	18. 17- Tear This Down

**Neverworld**

 _I contemplate. I sit here and wonder._  
 _What is my fate? Some sentimental anecdote?_  
 _My heart, it can't take being torn asunder._  
 _I need to break this spell that I'm under._  
 _\- Eric Stuart Band, "Tear This Down"_

 **Episode 17**

Izzy Izumi knew the past week had been eventful. Everyone did, and everyone was pretty well sick of it. But while much of the attention was on Matt and TK returning and Digimon dying, Izzy obsessed over the other details- Algomon, TK's dream, the Deva attack, and Primary Village. For a world where months could go by with no developments, he had doubts that all of these were isolated.

Thomas sat with him in the library, perusing two files at the same time. While Izzy did his actual research upstairs, this was an informal after-hours brainstorming session away from the monitors and daily hassles. Thomas wore his officer's uniform anyway. "Logically, it's the best assumption we can make right now. All of the pieces fit. But what's the motive?"

"Sorry I'm late," Joe said. Izzy smiled and gestured for him to sit. "Ryo and Cyberdramon had a disagreement outside. Ten stitches." He accepted Izzy's offer of a cup of tea and took a sip. "Any reason you wanted me in on this?"

"Yes, but we always welcome your opinion," Thomas said with a smile. "Those of us in the medical profession need to stick together."

Joe grimaced. "Don't bother comparing me to you, Thomas. Bet you breezed through your college entrance exams."

"Not at all. They were very difficult. They'd challenge any eleven year old."

While Joe glared, Izzy cleared his throat. "Anyway, all signs point to Algomon being responsible for Petaldramon's attack last July. He seems to have a command over plant-based Digimon and Petaldramon referred to other humans when the investigation team fought him. What we're missing is a motive. Did you remember anything unusual about Pabumon when you looked at him?"

"Pabumon?" Joe shook his head. "Pabumon was shaken up and had some small burns but there wasn't anything odd about its data. Maybe it was something else in town?"

"Shame we had Marcus take it to Primary Village." Izzy paused. "Hope it's okay."

"Hopefully Keenan can dig up some clues on what's happening over there," Thomas said, looking down at his folded arms. "That's a very troubling situation. We need it functioning again and soon."

"What if it's connected to Algomon's death?" The three turned to Kari, standing beside Izzy. "May I join you?"

Izzy's body tensed up. "Of course!" He gestured to the spot next to him on the couch and scrambled for the teapot. "Would you like some?"

She smiled. "Thank you!" Their smiles remained as he poured. Joe raised an eyebrow and looked at Thomas. Thomas looked back, returning a nod and half a grin.

Now it was Joe's turn to cough. "Kari, why would you think Algomon's behind Primary Village?"

"What if he was telling the truth?" Kari stared back, suddenly serious. "What if he created this world? What if his defeat prevents Digimon from being reborn?"

Thomas scratched his chin. "Algomon didn't seem the type to be that concerned about preserving the cycle of life here, but if he really was some sort of god, we can't discount the possibility."

"But Patamon and Gabumon died after Algomon," Izzy observed. "If his death caused the rebirth process to stop, they wouldn't have come back." He turned to Joe. "Was there anything odd about those digieggs?"

"Poyomon's had some additional data," Joe replied. "But there wasn't enough to identify it. It's something to keep an eye on but there's no need to freak TK out yet. Punimon was totally normal."

"What else did Algomon say?" Kari asked. Izzy handed her a sheet with his notes. "A new age of chaos? Promising to come back for revenge?" She shook her head and set the paper down. "What if he's serious? Whatever's going on, it sure isn't over."

As Izzy stared at her, mesmerized, Thomas said, "But disrupting Primary Village is hardly ushering in chaos. Some of our worlds don't have the same rebirth process and still function."

"What about the attack on Isthmian?" Kari asked.

Thomas shook his head. "Commander-General Yushima says it's a relatively common occurrence. That was just the first time they requested assistance. Other than Primary Village, nothing is out of the ordinary."

He paused as Yoshi approached them, hands on her hips. "Hey, Izzy! What's going on with my order?"

"Your... order?" Izzy furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yeah, you know, that bonus for saving your friends? I still haven't gotten it. I already complained to Jeri once."

Izzy let out an exasperated sigh. "And it still isn't here? Hold on..." He dug through his papers and found his tablet.

"I'm not trying to be rude, but you guys did sort of promise me this and we're going back on patrol tomorrow."

"What did you order?" Kari asked.

"Um..." Yoshi stared at Kari for a long time, then coughed. "It's personal. You don't need to know that."

Izzy shook his head. "It doesn't matter. We've had two river shipments this week and Jeri and Sora said they received everything." He threw his tablet on the table and sighed again before facing Yoshi. "I'll speak with Jeri. This is clearly unacceptable. That said, it's probably too late to get it before you leave. I'm deeply sorry."

He bowed. Yoshi's sneer remained, but she shook her head in surrender. "Fine. I was looking forward to having that on the road though. This kinda sucks." Izzy bowed again. Yoshi nodded and walked away.

"Sorry!" Kari shouted at her. Yoshi raised a hand in acknowledgment, but didn't look back.

Thomas desperately steered them back on course. "It's still impossible to speculate, but if Kari is right, this may be only be the first of many disruptions in the world. We'll need to monitor things very carefully. I'll tell Marcus to be extra-vigilant."

Izzy wasn't listening. He was hunched over, arms folded with a scowl on his face. He stood up suddenly. "Excuse me. I'm turning in for the night. Thomas, would you mind returning the tea to the kitchen?"

Joe and Thomas watched him storm off in silence. Kari chased after him. She caught Izzy mashing the elevator button.

Hand on his shoulder, she asked, "What's wrong?"

"That's the third error this week," he spat. "Kazu had some comics. Nene some guitar strings."

"Mimi said she's still waiting for some cake molds," Kari said, catching Izzy's eye. "Sora told me."

"This can't continue. If Jeri can't do her job..."

"Is it that bad?"

The elevator arrived and they stepped in. As the doors closed, Izzy huffed, "How much begging will it take to convince Sora to take over again?"

Once safe in the privacy of the elevator, Kari wrapped her arms around him. "Go easy on her. Everything's just... bad right now. We're all struggling."

He clutched her. "And we all need these comforts to keep going." He pulled her in tighter, closing his eyes. "That's an interesting theory about Algomon and Primary Village. I'll admit I never considered it."

"I hope you didn't mind me joining in. It sounded very serious."

Izzy leaned back, staring into her eyes. His head shook. "Not at all. I like it when you talk shop."

He charged forward for a deep, open kiss, pressing Kari against the wall. It alarmed and excited her all at once, and she was all too happy to return it. All the same, her eyes cheated down and her hand found the elevator buttons. She pushed the one for her floor.

When he pulled back, he took a second to catch his breath and said, "To tell you the truth, I'm not actually that tired."

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Kari ducked out of his arms and said, "We should probably get some sleep. It's a busy day tomorrow." She hesitated before giving him a quick peck on the lips. "Good night."

Izzy watched her return to her room, then signaled to go up another floor. He wasn't disappointed in her. He had forgotten himself and pushed too far. He had to stop it. They would never be able to talk about it if they wanted any hope of preserving their friendship, much less their relationship. He couldn't wait it out; in this world, she would never grow old enough to be ready. And if it ever did come up, it was far worse than fearing she'd say no. This was Kari: he feared she'd say yes anyway.

* * *

Mikey Kudo returned to the castle in need of a warm bed, a hot meal, and a long soak in the bath. Several days of exhaustive tunneling, making sure nothing else was hiding in that mountain, and living with a bitter Cody had worn him out. Eager to get the smell out of his hair, Mikey opted for the latter first. He didn't even return to his room, having Ballistamon drop off his bag upstairs while he went straight for the bath.

Exchanging his dirty clothes for a towel and a bucket of toiletries, he entered only to find Jeremy watching the water drain in the bath and JP with his back on the floor of one of the wash stations. Other than their bare feet, both were fully clothed.

"What's going on?" Mikey already knew, of course, and didn't like it.

JP pulled himself up. "Oh, sorry. Gotta do some work on the pipes today. It's a good time to scrub the pool too." He grinned. "So glad to have help this time. It's a lot faster with three people!"

"Three?" Completely clueless and mostly naked, Mikey doubted JP thought he was there to help.

Zoe burst in with two push brooms. "Hey JP, your 'under maintenance' sign fell down. I fixed it for you." She stopped in front of Mikey, her body suddenly shaking and her face contorting.

Mikey noticed her eyes straying to his towel and raised his eyebrows. "You're not allowed to freak if you're checking me out."

"Mikey!" Jeremy yelled. JP rushed to cover Zoe's eyes. "Put some clothes on!"

As Mikey dressed in the changing room, he realized how much he could benefit from a chat with JP and Zoe. After getting the cold shoulder from Cody all week, he wouldn't have minded talking to anybody.

He did mind getting stuck scrubbing the bottom of the pool with Jeremy as Zoe sat on the edge watching them. "You guys know I spent the last few days supervising a tunneling project, right?"

Zoe smiled back. "You know we're Team Angie, right?" Mikey looked at Jeremy, who only nodded in confirmation. The Fusion Fighter general glowered and kept scrubbing.

"So you and JP were part of Takuya's team, right?" Mikey asked Zoe. "I've only worked with him a couple times so I wonder what it's like with him as a leader."

Frowning, Zoe answered, "I'm not the best person to ask. Takuya and I aren't really on good terms right now. Why do you want to know?"

Mikey stopped his sweeping and faced her. "He wants me to stay with them at the other castle."

"Why the heck would you want to do that?" Jeremy asked.

"Think about it. If have a large enough presence there, we can start exploring the other continent. Maybe we'll find a way home."

"Do you really think Command hasn't thought of that already? If there was anything out there, they'd have gone looking."

Instead of responding, Mikey turned to Zoe. "You're upstairs a lot. What do you think?"

Zoe kept a straight face. "I don't know. They seem pretty confident that we won't find anything useful out there. But our monitors don't pick up very much that far out. They didn't even know about that castle until you guys found it." She sighed. "So if you're asking if I'm totally convinced? I'm not."

JP walked up to them, sitting next to Zoe. "No sense being polite, Z. They'll never convince us there's nothing on the other side. The real question is why would you leave the castle? Even if there was a small chance of getting back home, it's gotta suck living over there compared to all the stuff we have here."

"And it sounds way more dangerous. That other continent hasn't been cleared the way this one has. You'd be getting attacked left and right. Besides, how would we manage it? Would you really want Takuya to be in charge or that Yushima guy or should the officers still have a say? I'll tell you what, there's enough going on right now to worry Command without pulling something like this."

"Worry?" Mikey's head picked up. "What all are they worried about?"

"Uh..." Zoe gritted her teeth and looked away. "I don't know if I'm supposed to tell you guys." She shook her head. "Look, don't put me in a position to defend what goes on upstairs. I just don't know if I trust Takuya either." She looked at JP and Jeremy, both frowning at her. She turned to Mikey and added, "I can take over if you wanted to get going."

Mikey handed her his broom and climbed out. As he headed out, he looked back at Zoe and Jeremy, now scrubbing in silence. The conversation was helpful only in one way: he wasn't the only one with doubts.

* * *

Cody Hida returned to the castle needing to find Suzie before doing anything else. He knew he wasn't the only one able to support her, but she was on his mind the entire trip. Much as he cursed Tai for subjecting him to this separation and struggled to be professional and respectful around Mikey, he mainly wanted to know she was doing all right.

His first sweep of the castle was unsuccessful, ending up in Ophani Tower and the kitchen. The hunt exhausted him, so he stopped for a seat and a drink.

This proved useful as Mimi and Tommy walked in. Mimi gave him a bright smile. "Cody! Welcome back! Did you want something special for lunch?"

"Maybe later. I just want to find Suzie right now."

Both of them stopped in their tracks. Hesitant, Mimi replied, "I... haven't seen her. See you later!" She rushed out in a hurry.

Tommy watched her, not moving. He closed his eyes, shook his head and turned to Cody. "I'm not doing this again. Not for her. I saw her heading to the train terminal." As he followed Mimi out the door, she added, "Don't tell her I said that."

Cody found every part of this curious, but followed the lead anyway. The last place he wanted to be was a railroad tunnel, but if for whatever reason she was in there, he was seeing her. And he did: she sat in the middle of the platform with her back to him. Before he could approach, TK sat next to her. Poyomon bounced in circles around them.

It was a confusing sight as neither said a word. Cody wasn't sure if interrupting was a good idea. Then TK slowly reached for her hand, gently rubbing it. Cody's stomach churned as her head turned, exposing the faint smile on her face.

Before he could charge in on them, Poyomon stopped suddenly and started to glow. TK popped to his feet. "No way!" he exclaimed. With a chuckle, he said, "You're going to get to see this!"

"See what?" Suzie asked. "Should we get Joe?"

"It's too late now! He's digivolving!" Indeed, the glow increased in size, the data compiled, and by the time it subsided a healthy Tokomon floated instead. TK pulled it into a hug.

Suzie stood up, cautiously approaching TK and Tokomon. She pet the white Digimon's head carefully. TK put a hand on her shoulder. Tears were in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I should be happy for you. I just..." She sniffled. "...this'll never happen to me, will it?"

He pulled her in closer, flashing a sympathetic grin. "Good thing you got to see this then." She returned a sad nod. TK leaned in for a kiss that Suzie was all too happy to receive. Cody saw everything. He backed away, stunned and hurt. He couldn't confront them here; not with Suzie in this state. Cody doubted he was thinking clearly either.

Suzie pulled back, breaking off both the kiss and the embrace. "We should cut this out. Cody's going to be back any time now." She shook her head. "I'm really happy you were here for me but-"

"But what?" TK smiled. "It was really nice getting to know you these last few days. I'm happy we can get each other through this. We don't actually have to stop, you know."

"But Cody-"

"What about Cody?" His grin widened.

It was all Cody needed to hear. Now he had to leave, fist clenched in an angry sprint out of the tunnel. His talk with Suzie was bound to be stern, but he knew he'd be able to keep calm. Given her circumstances, he could forgive a lot.

A confrontation with TK, however, could well lead to a fistfight. What made it all so terrible was how little Cody was surprised.

* * *

Jeri Katou was already struggling not to cry in the upstairs meeting room, and the meeting hadn't technically started. Izzy waited for Tai to finish reading a report. Both of them looked uncomfortable. Tai shook his head, looked at Jeri and said, "Do you know what this is about?"

She nodded, keeping her head down. "I wish I had an answer. I could have sworn I put the orders in. I remember all of them."

"Are you sure?" Izzy asked.

"I..." Jeri bit her lip. "Well, it says none of them got placed, doesn't it?"

Tai extended a hand. "Is everything okay? I know we've been dealing with a lot lately. You know you can talk to us if you don't think you can do your job."

"I want to say that's not it but..." She started sobbing.

"Jeri, you understand how important your work is," Izzy said, in a calm voice. "We allow everybody to order these personal items as a reward for helping out, especially those fighting. It's disappointing when they don't arrive on schedule. We begin to lose everyone's trust. And furthermore, if this continues, how long before it affects shipment of the essentials?"

"You think I should step down, don't you?"

Tai shook his head. "No, nobody's-"

Izzy interrupted him. "Maybe it would be for the best if you let Sora take over-"

"Wait, really?" Tai's head darted to his fellow officer.

"At least until you feel like you're better able to focus on the job."

As Jeri let his words sink in, the door flew open and Sora burst in, carrying a folder. "What's going on? You better not be attacking Jeri without talking to me first."

Izzy leaned back and looked up at her, suddenly fearful. "We're not attacking, we're-"

"Completely getting the wrong idea." Sora dropped the folder in front of Izzy. "Confirmations of everything we had to re-order this week. Mimi's cake mold. Nene and Kazu's things. Jeri placed those orders. She didn't do anything wrong." She fell into a seat next to Jeri and rubbed her shoulder. "Stick up for yourself. This is why we printed all that." Her tone was no less biting.

Izzy looked through the new evidence with a troubled look on his face. "Where's Yoshi's?"

"I took that one out. You don't need to know what she ordered."

"But... if these were all placed correctly, how did they get removed on the final orders?"

"You can worry about that. But I'm not going to let you blame Jeri for something she didn't do. I bet she did everything right from the start."

Jeri looked down. "All the same, I am dealing with a lot right now. Maybe it would still be best if I-"

"I won't hear it." Sora shrugged. "Besides, my personal life's a mess right now too." She turned back to Izzy. "Are we good here?"

"No..." Izzy shook his head. "The implications of this are far more staggering."

Sora furrowed her eyebrows and glared at Izzy. "Are Jeri and I clear?"

Izzy looked up at her and immediately regretted it. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good." She stood up and smirked at Tai. "You owe me lunch for this. Let's go."

She stepped out. Tai looked at Izzy and Jeri, still comprehending what had just happened. He mumbled "Yes, ma'am" and followed her out.

In the elevator, she was still angry. "I can't believe you two would throw her under the bus like that."

"Wishful thinking, probably," Tai said, earning another glare. "I mean it! Something's messing those orders up. If it's not Jeri, that means it's something beyond our control."

Sora's eyes widened. Tai shook his head and added, "We've never been able to figure out how the river works, but we rely on it for everything. If it's not delivering the way it's supposed to... we could be in a lot of trouble."

She patted his shoulder and grimaced, but didn't say anything. Looking down, Tai said, "You really care about Jeri, don't you?" Sora nodded. "It's cute."

Sora flashed a quick smile, but again didn't talk. The elevator was almost to the first floor so Tai got to the big question: "Why did you say your personal life was a mess? Aren't I your personal life right now?" She let out a sad chuckle, kissed him, and took his hand as the doors opened.

Tai watched her closely as she loaded her plate with rice and curry. He should have been elated that against all odds they would end up together again. But this time was different. Their prior relationship had lifted both of their spirits. They could look into each other's eyes and find a happiness they had never before encountered in this world. Now it felt like a necessity, desperately clinging to each other to avoid falling into despair. With everything going on, and this new river problem stacked on top of it, if Tai was Sora's personal life, her assessment was right: it was a mess.

So was she. They sat at the closest open table, in adjacent seats. Before they had always faced each other. Tai downed his curry quickly. Sora took her time, distracted by the sight of Matt and Nene. Tai had long since given up trying to take her mind off them.

He had also given up trying to play down their relationship. Tai didn't know whether he was the rebound, the jealousy card, or merely the only thing keeping her sane. From the way Sora still looked at Matt, Tai knew it was one of the three. No matter what, nothing good came from it. Matt directed his famous nasty looks at Tai just as often as Sora. Tai was sure he was inadvertently returning them. He hated what Matt was doing to Sora. He hated himself for making the whole thing that much worse.

"Tai! Sora! Mind if we join you?" Nene, meanwhile, was completely oblivious, sitting across from them before either could say no. Matt stopped in his tracks, swearing to himself as she compelled him to join.

As Sora and Matt stared at each other angrily, Tai attempted civility. "We're still trying to figure out what happened to your order. Jeri did place it when you reported it, so we need to do more digging."

Nene smiled. "Thank you for the update. Which leads me to the reason I wanted to talk: how do Matt and I schedule a gig?" Now Matt turned his glare to Tai while Sora moved to Nene.

"Uh... talk to Koichi, I guess? Are you thinking of some big production or just you two with guitars or... harmonicas or whatever you're playing now?" Tai tried not to notice Matt's eyes narrow. "Because if it's nothing complicated you might as well just set up out here and start jamming." He turned to Matt, cracking a smile. "Jamming? Did I use that right?"

"No," Matt replied.

Nene ignored everything. "We'll have to keep it acoustic. The rest of the band is still a ways away. I'm sure we'll be able to deliver a stand-out show in a few weeks if Ewan and I aren't sent on any missions."

Tai looked at Sora. Now she was glaring at both of them. She turned to him, narrowing an eyebrow. As if on instinct, he blurted, "Actually, Nene, we do have a mission for you."

"You do? I hadn't heard anything."

"A new development we want the investigation team to look at. Expect a call this afternoon." Tai took a bite of curry before adding, "Is that all right?"

"Of course," Nene said with a smile. "It's important that we have our priorities in order. I'll see you then, Commander." She stood up with her empty tray, bowed and left to deposit it.

Sora knew the three of them would not survive long alone. Her food was only half-eaten, but she stood as well, kissed Tai's cheek and followed Nene's lead.

Tai rubbed his cheek as he turned to Matt. Matt looked away and sighed. "Eleven years and we're back in high school."

"I don't know what you mean. We got along in high school," Tai said.

"You clearly don't remember us in high school."

"What did you expect her to do, Matt? Wait for..." Tai waved his hand towards Nene. "...whatever you've got going on to play itself out? She waited long enough."

" _Almost_ long enough," Matt muttered. "I meant what I said. I thought I was going to be over it by now. But I really like Nene. She understands a lot. She's been very helpful." He looked down. "But I wasn't sure about us being together. I get how that crossed a line. I wasn't sure if what we were doing was okay." He picked up his tray and stood, staring down at Tai. "You cleared that up pretty fast."

* * *

Suzie Wong pushed off her reunion with Cody as long as she could, but lunch with him proved to be inescapable. She knew what she had to do. After having to put up with the angst her brother went through when his relationship imploded, she was going to confess immediately. She just feared Cody's reaction would be as harsh as Henry's.

She must have waited too long. Cody had never been affectionate, but he seemed even more distant than usual, and didn't hunt her down right away the way she expected him to. All the more reason to get it over with. As soon as they sat down, she said, "Look, I'm not going to waste time. I kinda screwed up while you were gone."

Cody nodded. Somehow there was no emotion on his face. "I'm listening," he said.

"I thought I was going to be okay. I tried to pretend this wasn't a big deal. I didn't want to break down in front of Henry or the others. But TK... he's been through a lot too..."

"So I've heard," was all Cody said.

"He took me aside and... he knew what I was facing. He helped me through this." Suzie lowered her head. "But we got a little too close. We kissed." She winced. "I'm really sorry."

"It's fine," Cody answered, closing his eyes. "I learned long ago that sometimes people need a second chance." He reached for and squeezed her hand. "I worried about you the whole time I was gone. I wanted to help you. I'm angry that I couldn't. If it means you're okay, I can overlook one mistake."

Suzie leaned over and hugged him, squeezing him tightly. "Thank you! I don't deserve you!"

Cody cracked a slight smile. "And I'm here now. Any time you need me. Just ask."

"Of course!"

They separated. Cody noticed a few onlookers and straightened his posture. "I understand how it can happen. TK's like that."

"What do you mean?" Suzie asked, finally digging into her plate.

"Let's just say I'm not surprised that he'd try this."

"Try what?" Mouth full of rice, she said, "Sure I shouldn't have kissed him and all that, but he still went out of his way to help me. He saved me. If it wasn't for him, I..." Suddenly the bad thoughts flooded back. A vacant expression crossed her eyes. "...I would be pretty bad."

Cody shook his head. "Whatever. I'm back now. You don't need to run to him anymore."

Her eyes welled as she kept eating. "But... I really needed him. Maybe I still do. This has been really hard for me and TK gets that. Nobody else gets it." Suzie turned to her boyfriend. "I don't know if you'd get it."

"Let me try." Cody narrowed his eyebrows, leaning in. "I want to help you."

"...and you don't want me anywhere near TK? Is that right?"

She looked his way. His expression didn't change. After a pause, he answered, "Right."

Suzie took her plate and stood. With a huff, she said, "I'll take that under consideration and let you know what I decide." And she walked away.

"What do you mean by that?" he shouted after her. She didn't answer. Cody shook his head angrily and returned to his lunch. He wasn't angry at Suzie; she was just being her cute stubborn self. He could forgive her. TK, on the other hand, was out of second chances.

* * *

Thomas Norstein did the best he could instructing the investigation team on their mission. He hadn't paid attention to the river situation as it had been an internal matter until the last few hours. The only serious attempt to investigate the source of the river's power had been before his arrival and yielded nothing. To top it all off, even Izzy was surprised when Tai came back from lunch and announced this was going to happen. Thomas would have strongly questioned Tai's rash decision if this wasn't both a severe issue and a perfect job for a team that hadn't been fully utilized in more than a month.

He kept his instructions simple: they'd be going out the next day, sailing upriver and observing as much as they can, even camping there until the next scheduled shipment. Izzy provided what little they knew of the river's process and Yolei, who had been part of the original investigation, was on board to give them a fifth member to replace Suzie. Thomas broke the meeting satisfied that everyone felt like they knew what they were doing, even if nobody actually did.

"Nene, can you stick around for a second?" Tai asked as everyone else left to pack.

"Of course." Nene remained seated and waited for everyone else to leave. Before Tai could say anything, she said, "I see you and Sora are back together. Congratulations."

Tai frowned. "That's... sort of what I wanted to talk about."

With an eye out the window, Nene grinned slyly. "I see... if you want to make sure it stays that way, I wouldn't worry. Matt's feelings for me are sincere."

"That's... no." Tai sat down next to Nene, biting his lip. "This thing with you and Matt? It's eating her alive. She doesn't deserve this."

She frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that. It's a good thing she has you. I still don't see why you need to talk to me."

"Look, I'm sure you like Matt. But this whole thing between the three of us is messy enough already. You don't want to get caught up in the middle of it. It just makes it all worse."

Nene paused. She looked around the room while scratching her chin. "Let me see if I understand you. You want me to leave my boyfriend... so that your girlfriend will leave you for him?"

"It sounds insane when you put it that way, but yes." Tai sighed. "I did say this was messy."

She looked down. "Tai, I can tell you care very deeply for Sora." Tai nodded. Nene stared at him. "You have her. She has you. Matt and I have each other. Nothing is wrong with this situation. Everybody wins."

"Not Sora," Tai replied. "Look, I'll will do whatever I can for her, okay? She's everything I ever needed." He shook his head. "But she doesn't feel the same way. Not with Matt around. I lost to him a long time ago. She loves him, not me."

She chuckled. "Frankly, it's easy to understand why." Nene slid her seat back and stood. "I'm not trying to be meddlesome or disruptive, Tai. I like Matt and I wasn't afraid to go after him. I'm not going to back down just because you're afraid to go after Sora."

"I'm not..." Tai gritted his teeth and looked away. "It's more than that..."

"Then I'll leave you to figure it out." She bowed and headed for the door.

Before she pulled it open, she said, "You know, I've never found reason to question your leadership here. You have a difficult job and seem to do it well. But I must say, Tai..." She turned to him, eyebrows narrowing. "An essential quality of any leader is the ability to recognize who his allies are." Her eyes softened again as a smile appeared. "We are allies in this, whether you like it or not."

* * *

TK Takaishi had been perfectly content outside, seated on the ground with his back to the wall, one eye on a sci-fi paperback and the other on Tokomon frolicking in the grass. It was a pleasant, sunny day, as it usually was in the Digital World, so he was surprised when he suddenly found himself in a shadow. Cody hovered over him.

"Oh, uh..." TK set the book down and forced a smile. "Cody."

Cody folded his arms. "What about Cody?"

TK cringed. He sighed and got to his feet. "You... heard about that, huh?" Now that they were eye-to-eye, Cody glared at him properly. TK rubbed his neck. "Hey, we just connected, you know? She was... she was in bad shape. She tried to fake it for her brother and everyone, but she had to let it out." He frowned. "It was painful to watch. I really felt for her. I guess things happened."

"And you just completely ignored me and how I feel?"

TK scoffed. "I didn't even know about you two. You can ask her all that. All I know is I care about her a lot and I don't see why I should give her up just because you're back."

He tried to walk away, but Cody threw his arm in TK's path, his fist slamming against the wall. TK froze, spine bristling. "Jeez, when did you get tall?" he mumbled.

"This is just like you," Cody spat. "I knew you were capable of this, but never in a million years did I think you'd do it to me."

"What?" Incredulous, TK's head shook. "I'm not doing anything. You really think I pushed her into this? You're really taking her side over mine?"

"I trust her more than you."

TK's arm lashed out, grabbing Cody's wrist and pulling it down off the wall. Eyes intensifying, TK said, "How can you say that? After everything we went through?!"

Cody ripped his arm away. "Look, we're not supposed to tell you what happens after you all came here. I get how dangerous that can be. But I can't pretend it didn't happen. I can't change how I feel about you."

"How you feel? Look, if this is about-"

"That was just the beginning. I learned a lot of things about you, TK. And I don't like them." Cody exhaled loudly through his nose and added, "Stay away from her."

He turned around and marched away. TK wouldn't let him. "Don't act like she doesn't have a say in this. She needs me. You don't know what it's like losing your partner." That brought Cody to a halt. "It's like... like..."

Cody clenched his fist. "Losing family?"

"Yeah!" TK nodded quickly. "When my parents split up, and my dad-"

" _Your_ dad?" Cody spun around, glaring straight into TK's eyes.

TK realized his mistake instantly. Voice suddenly softer, he said, "Sorry... I forgot."

Cody shook his head, tears in his eyes. "Get away from us." This time, he jogged away. This time, TK didn't try to chase him.

* * *

Yolei Inoue knew a mission with the investigation team was simultaneously the last thing she wanted and the best thing for her at the time. A week after the breakup, and days after the disaster at Isthmian, she hadn't been motivated to do anything. She refused to stay cooped up in her room: the unfinished Terriermon robot still haunted her, but she had put too much work into it to throw it out. There were always books and games and people to enjoy them with, but they weren't productive. Yolei hated being stagnant, but was in a rut over what she wanted to do next. In that regard, getting sent outside to help the cause was a great idea.

At the same time, sleeping outside in the middle of a sweltering jungle was annoying. After sailing upriver on Deckerdramon the first day, they traveled on foot, looking for any possible source of their supplies. Her original mission years ago had come up empty; she had to contain her pessimism to give the new kids a chance at better luck. They had new tools, new Digimon, and the records of the previous expedition telling them where not to look.

The new kids also had quite a bit of baggage for Yolei to navigate. Nobody liked Christopher that much, and she was troubled by the way Ken seemed to be getting closer to him. On the other hand, everybody had loved Nene until she started dating Matt. The disapproval in Yolei's circle was unanimous, but not as passionate as Sora had been counting on. Yolei would never admit it, but she found it appropriate that she and Sora were dumped at the same time and felt neither deserved more sympathy than the other.

She was downright afraid of spending any time with Mikey. He was easy enough to avoid in the castle, where his actions had made him unpopular and powerless. Out here he was in his element, eager to save the day and be the dashing hero Yolei still thought him as. He was both irresistible and poisonous, and nothing in his interactions on the first day led her to think he didn't still want her. In her state, Mikey was tempting; she had to be very careful not to want him too.

Then there was Ewan. He and Yolei shared the second night watch- important not because they risked being attacked, but they were close to the source and had to watch for any river-related activity. He wasn't universally liked around the castle so much as nobody saw reason to dislike him. Ewan was friendly and willing to help out wherever, but never got in the way of anything. This was also the same person who turned Mimi down, which alone shocked Yolei, never mind how he had done it. She spent much of the night watching him, wondering how someone so humble could be so harsh.

It took her a while to realize what he was doing with his hands. Ewan was not only practicing his drumming, he was drilling a specific sequence. His motions seemed automatic and seasoned. Yolei wasn't an expert, but she was impressed with his technique.

Once he took a break, Yolei said, "How long have you played?"

"A week," Ewan replied.

A week? She grinned and shook her head. "You are amazing." He only grumbled in response. She scooted closer so she could keep her voice down. "I mean it. You know how many times I gave up playing something? I haven't been down to Matt and Nene's sex dungeon lately, but I bet half those instruments were mine."

Ewan winced. "Thanks for making me think about my sister having a sex dungeon. You really call it that?"

She cringed, realizing her mistake. "Er... no. But I've wanted to all week. It's kind of a touchy subject with my friends."

"I bet. Don't get me wrong, I like Matt and I'm glad Nene's happy. I just... you know." Yolei nodded. "Plus I walked in on them yesterday..." He shuddered.

Yolei let herself picture it. She raised her eyebrows. "I'm not gonna lie. I wouldn't mind seeing that. Those two are really hot."

Ewan shook his head and resumed his air drumming. Yolei got back on track. "But I am serious. You're playing that well, that fast. And you cook. You're smart. You can dance... it's pretty incredible."

"Do you mind?" he muttered.

Yolei narrowed her eyes. "No. You are so talented, but you never seem to be doing anything around the castle. You just lounge around with Nene and Mikey all day. You can do whatever you want here, and we'd all love you for it. Why don't you?"

"Maybe I don't want to," he replied. "Maybe I don't care about showing off, or being popular, or standing out." Ewan sneered. "You sound like my sister. Is it such a problem that I spend my time doing nothing with her and Mikey? I shouldn't be here anyway."

Before Yolei could respond, they heard a low rumble upriver. The ground shook in response. It wasn't loud or strong enough to wake the others, but she and Ewan both felt and heard it. They looked at each other for just a second before he rushed to wake up Mikey while Yolei poked Hawkmon.

After a quick summary from Ewan, Mikey declared, "We need to check this out now."

"All of us?" Ewan asked. Nene and Christopher were still down.

"Yolei and I will go on Halsemon. Stay here and we'll call for backup if we need it."

Ewan nodded, then turned to Yolei. "Make sure he calls for backup if you need it."

The whole plan sounded sensible to Yolei. Given how little they had found on the original trip, any lead was both encouraging and unlikely to last long. She armor digivolved Hawkmon into Halsemon and jumped on his back. It wasn't until Mikey joined her and clutched her waist that she realized how awkward this was going to get.

"Don't get touchy with me, buddy," she said as Halsemon set out.

Mikey frowned. "What? I don't want to fall off."

Yolei shook her head. He was right; there was nothing untoward here. She had said it for herself. This was the last situation she wanted to share with him.

To take her mind off of him, she pulled out her D-Terminal and the area map saved to it. They were near the river's source, which was the obvious place to start. The small, algae-covered pond was surrounded by the forest on three sides. The side opposite the river was a large cliff with several thin waterfalls streaming down it. Halsemon arrived just in time to see the supply raft begin its journey. Its two Muchomon guards waved back at their fellow avian.

"Damn!" Yolei shouted. "We missed it!"

"We should keep going to the source," Mikey said. "Maybe there's still time to see how it got here."

"This is the source. There's nothing past this. Unless you want to stick your head in the water and see if there's anything down there."

"How can it be the source of the river if there are waterfalls?" Mikey pointed them out.

Yolei narrowed her eyes and ordered Halsemon closer to them. She didn't remember the cliff and the waterfall being there, only an elevated moraine that held in the water. At first, she blamed her memory for the discrepancy. But Mikey was right; the waterfall suggested more river.

"This... wasn't here last time," she mumbled. She felt the side of the cliff. It was solid limestone. As she ran her hand over it, it shifted slightly without any sort of a groan or creak. One of the waterfalls suddenly changed course, pouring directly on top of them. Yolei shrieked and pulled Halsemon away; the water was lukewarm but doused them good.

"What the hell?!" she shouted, tugging at her soaked shirt.

Mikey turned on his squawker. "Ewan, we found something. We're going in. No sign of trouble yet but have everyone on standby."

"Wait, what?" Yolei cried. Mikey slapped Halsemon's flank and they soared up to the top of the cliff. There they ran into heavy forestation, too much to justify flying. Halsemon found dry ground, landed, and reverted back to Hawkmon.

Mikey reloaded Shoutmon, who didn't find the ground dry enough. "Thanks, make me walk through the swamp," he grumbled as his feet slogged through the damp grass.

Yolei wrung out her shirt, muttering, "We're all soaked." She ran her hands through her hair, annoyed at how much water it retained. "And they all used to make fun of me for wearing a helmet..."

The ground shook again, this time stronger. Yolei lost her balance; Mikey grabbed her arm to keep him from falling over. She stared at him and his slick hair for just a fraction too long before pulling away. "Let's get this over with," she said, scratching her neck.

The thick canopy blocked the moonlight, but both of them had flashlights. Not that they saw anything: the forest was thick and wet, but otherwise ordinary. Every so often, the ground would shift, but these were weaker disruptions and they maintained their balance easily enough. Their lighting was just good enough to see that they weren't finding anything and didn't know where they were going.

After a few minutes, Mikey said, "So, uh, sorry about last week at the other castle."

"Which part?"

Mikey winced, feeling the sting in her words. "I guess the part where I hit on you."

"Oh..." Yolei looked away from him, distracting herself with a tree stump she tried to pretend was suspicious. She couldn't, and replied, "Because that wasn't the worst thing you did back there."

"But you were the only one who was actually worried about me. And I go and make it weird." He shrugged. "I guess for some reason I thought you actually liked me."

Fed up with the conversation, she loudly blurted, "I do like you!" Mikey stopped and turned to her. She stared back, suddenly mortified. "At least I did. And I want to. I want to a lot. But you'd be awful for me right now. I honestly wish I didn't have to look at you. You're a lot to deal with."

Mikey started to respond, but saw something odd on the fringe of his flashlight's range. "What the...?" The forest ended suddenly, but there wasn't a clearing. He examined more closely and discovered that not only were there no trees, there was no ground either. The forest was flying through the air.

As Yolei, Hawkmon and Shoutmon met him at the edge, a bout of turbulence hit and sent him stumbling over the cliff.

"Mikey!" Shoutmon shrieked as he helplessly watched his partner fall.

Yolei and Hawkmon reacted faster, leaping off the cliff after him, Hawkmon digivolving in midair. Aquilamon caught Yolei and dove at top speed. Squeezing her legs tight, she reached out as they passed Mikey. His arms were already fully extended and she hauled him into her arms, careful not to fall off her steed.

Even after Mikey was securely on board, he didn't budge, holding her tightly. "Thanks," he whispered. They stared at each other, lips an inch away. He started to pull in.

Aquilamon changed course and ascended, knocking Mikey backwards. Once he and Yolei pulled their eyes off each other, they saw the enormous wings and the stone body of the Digimon they had boarded. Aquilamon had to fly full speed to get back to the top. He landed on top of the massive creature, rejoining Shoutmon.

As Yolei pulled away from Mikey to let Shoutmon have him, she got a reading on her D3: "'Ceresmon. Mega level.' You got that right. 'One of the Olympos XII, her body is made of rocks and fertile soil, sprouting a forest with the most delicious fruits in the world.'"

"...guess that includes cooking equipment and card games too," Shoutmon mumbled.

"Hey, this is serious."

"I am serious! Jeez, back home we have boxes of snack chips growing on trees. Anything goes here."

"He is right," boomed a female voice from nearby. "I am the provider. I bestow my gifts to those in need." They found the owner of the voice standing on a tree stump. Her legs resembled tree stumps themselves. Other than the petals, vines and flowers that surrounded and sometimes enveloped her, she was nude. "I am Ceresmon."

Yolei pointed down. "Aren't we standing on Ceresmon?"

"This is her talking form," Shoutmon said. "I had to deal with her back home a few times. She's actually a really nice gal."

"Why did you seek me out? Why enter the sacred forest?" Ceresmon asked. Petals covered her eyes, so they could not see her expression.

"Okay, well, first off, uh... thank you so much for everything," Yolei stammered. "I don't know what we'd do without you. I mean, we'd probably starve to be honest."

"Your gratitude is appreciated," Ceresmon said, urging them to get to the point.

"Why isn't everything we order being delivered?" Mikey asked bluntly.

"Mikey!" Hawkmon exclaimed. "We mustn't appear ungrateful."

"But that's why we're here. We're trying to figure this out." Mikey scratched his cheek. "Just didn't expect to be dealing with a plant goddess."

"I am not a goddess," Ceresmon replied. "Not as you humans would define it. My powers are granted by the creators of this world. They were once unlimited. Something has weakened them."

"What could have done that?" Yolei asked.

"As the creators fall, so too do the powers that sustain life and conquer death."

"Creators fall?" Yolei gasped. "Please say you don't mean Algomon!"

"Indeed. Algomon is one of the masters responsible for this world. We are all empowered by his presence."

"Empowered?! He tried to kill our friends! He locked TK and Matt away for years! I never met the guy, but he sounds like an ass!"

"Uh... Yolei?" Mikey murmured.

"I will not stand for such blasphemy in my forest," Ceresmon said, her voice stern but calm. "Algomon is a friend to all of nature. If you humans stood against him, can you truly say your intentions were for the good of the land?"

"Whoa, whoa..." Shoutmon took a few steps forward, raising his hands. "I ain't going to let you paint these guys as the enemy. These are my friends. They protect this world. If they had to off him, I'm sure it was for a good reason."

"Do you mean to say you killed Algomon?"

Yolei and Mikey looked at each other nervously. Hesitantly, Shoutmon answered, "Well, we prefer to use the word 'deleted.'"

"Have you no idea what you've done? He may have seemed a dark presence to humans, but even a dark presence is a necessary one. We are all weaker without it. Who knows what this will do to the world?"

Mikey tried to protest. "But-"

"I will not hear it!" Ceresmon boomed. "Leave my forest at once!"

"But what about-"

"I understand you still rely on my gifts. I am not so cruel as to deny you. They will continue to the best of my ability. But I may not be so hospitable should you decide to return to this place."

"Thank you, but this is important!" Mikey insisted. "So there are Digimon out there that created this world? How do we know who they are? And what happens if they're destroyed?"

"That is simple," Ceresmon replied. "To destroy the creators... is to destroy the entire world."

* * *

Tai Kamiya usually skipped out on what passed for nightlife at the castle. A full day of work at Command took enough out of him that he usually settled for a walk with Agumon or retired early. Still, he felt compelled to stop by the hall and hear Matt's performance. Apparently, it was a popular draw: a dozen others had parked in chairs to watch him play in front of the stage.

Between songs, Tai joked, "Hey, you know you need a permit for busking."

Matt frowned at him. "You already said this was fine."

"Jeez, I was just..." Tai gave up and looked for a good place to watch. Instead, he found Sora seated at a table well behind everyone else.

She barely noticed him sit down, instead fixated on Matt's singing. Halfway into his next song, she reached over and took Tai's hand without looking. There was concern in her face, and her eyes would narrow in anger as much as they softened. No matter what, they never wavered.

"You'd still take him back, wouldn't you?" Tai asked.

Her eyes closed for the longest time, but even when they opened they still didn't turn to him. Sora answered, "I shouldn't. He may never want to." Finally, her head lowered. "But yes. And I know he feels the same way. We still love each other. That's why it's so painful that we keep hurting each other like this. That's all we're doing right now, and it's scary. He's scared. I can hear it."

Shaking her head, she continued, "It won't happen any time soon. We're not ready. But someday we'll figure it out. Until then, he can just enjoy Nene as much as he wants." She squeezed his hand tighter.

"I'm in love with you," he said. Tai waited for her response. There wasn't one. "I'll take you over anyone else every time. I want to be there for you. I never want to hurt you. Everything Matt's doing to you... I wouldn't dream of it. Remember how easy it was when it was just us two? You can have that."

Sora's head fell onto his shoulder. Her eyes didn't stray. "Thank you for being here. I don't know what I'd do without you. With you around I feel like this is all... manageable."

"And that's why we can't stay together."

Now she stirred, casting her eyes on his, jolting upright. Tai was staring forward, frowning. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I need to stop pretending that you love me the way I need you to. You love Matt. Which is fine." His fisted hand uncurled on the last word, spoken loud enough to draw an angry look from Ryo seated in front of him. Tai lowered his voice. "But I can't just fill in while you wait for him to come back."

"But..." Sora clutched his sleeve, gasping for words. "Tai, I know what you're saying but... with everything going on, I need you. I thought you needed me too. How can we stop?"

Tai faced her and instantly regretted it. Her eyes were desperate, her mouth ready to continue pleading. He looked away, grimacing. "We need to. This isn't good enough for either of us." He choked up. "You deserve someone you want to be with."

"Tai!" she cried, checking quickly to see if anyone was looking. "Don't say that! Don't act like I don't care about you! You deserve to be happy."

"I'm not. Not if all I am is your backup." He turned to her, looking her in the eyes and suddenly unmoved by her tears. "I won't settle for being someone's second choice. Not even you. You shouldn't settle at all."

"Tai, I..." Her face fell into his shoulder as she cried. "Can't we just..."

"What, fake it? That's all we're doing. And it's pulling us farther away from Matt." Tai rubbed her head. "Sora, all those years where you thought we were growing apart because I was busy upstairs? That wasn't it at all. I could always make time for you. But I didn't because I was afraid it would lead to this. It was betraying Matt. And we still are, no matter what he's doing."

"I don't care."

"You should. If you still want him that badly, go get him. Whatever's standing in your way, I'm not going to be part of it. In fact..." He buried his head. "It's probably for the best that we stay away from each other."

"No... Tai, don't-"

He shook his head. "I don't want to be tempted." With a sigh, he added, "Not again. I'm done."

Matt finished playing and the crowd surrounding him applauded. Tai left Sora alone and sobbing, fighting his way past the oblivious spectators before his own tears arrived. Matt had already started packing his guitar when Tai approached him.

"I'm out," Tai said, getting him to look up. "Sora and I are done. It was a mistake. Keep breaking her heart for as long as you want, but you can't use me as an excuse anymore."

Matt only frowned. "Is that supposed to fix everything? You think we're suddenly fine just because you figured out why she turned to you?"

Tai's nostrils flared. "I stopped it because I don't want to be treated like that. I won't stand in for you whenever you run off."

"Fine, but that's your choice. Don't pretend you did it for anyone besides you." Matt stood, slinging his guitar case around his shoulder. "And don't act like everything's better now just because you realized you screwed up. You still did it. She still did it. And I can't be sure you won't do it again."

Matt tried to walk by, but Tai grabbed his arm and pointed at Sora. "She deserves better than this!"

"Of course she does," Matt said, gritting his teeth. "But right now neither of us can help her. So just leave it alone." He jerked his arm free and walked off to his room in Ophani Tower.

In time, Sora gathered herself up and walked outside, surely to pour her heart out to Biyomon. Tai returned to his room in the keep, hoping he could get enough sleep to be ready for whatever crisis awaited him the next day. He had always believed that if Matt returned, the three of them would be able to pick up their friendship right where it left off. At no point did he think they would head off in different directions, with no sign of ever turning around.

* * *

Keenan Crier had never been to Primary Village before. He didn't even know how to get there, totally relying on Crowmon to make the trip. They were out of anyone's range of communication, with only the minimal data Tai had provided from his recent trip. His mission was extended observation, hoping for any clues about what was going on. He hoped no one would mind them camping in one of the nurseries. The reports suggested they weren't being used anyway.

"Now I wish we'd visited ours back home for comparison," Falcomon said as he scanned the area. It was still quiet and cold, but again nothing looked amiss.

Keenan felt one of the digieggs. It was still lifeless. "This is wrong," he mumbled. "Shouldn't be like this."

"Yes, that was the impression from Command when we received this assignment. We should make camp. It's been a long flight."

Falcomon reached for his partner's backpack. Keenan pulled it off his shoulders, but instead of any of the camping gear his partner was reaching for, he pulled out the dossier Thomas had prepared for him. He scanned it carefully as he walked around.

"We don't have to do this right now," Falcomon said, opening a box of digibytes.

Keenan ignored him. His partner may have been too tired from the trip to respect the magnitude of the place or the problem, but he was going to scope out as much as he could. He rubbed multiple eggs, sampling the array to see if any strays showed signs of life inside. There weren't any.

He checked his file again. Thomas had said something about a black egg sitting on its own that was still viable. But by the time he got to the end, all he saw was the nest. Whatever it was that Tai had found, it had already hatched.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 18: "Title of the Song"**  
Takuya and Koji's return puts everybody on edge. Jeri and Koichi are forced to work together on a new event. Mikey's distaste of a gag order over the Ceresmon discovery puts him at odds with Yolei.

" _You don't have to look out for me. It makes me think you want this to happen. So just answer me... right now- do you?"_

* * *

 **Author Notes**

One character note that is pretty consistent throughout media and pretty consistently overlooked is how private Sora is about her personal life (which helps explain the dearth of Sorato content in tri.). She doesn't like talking about it or showing it off in public. With Matt's absence lording over everything, there's no way she's avoiding discussing it with her closest friends, but it's something to keep in mind. Her small signs of affection towards Tai here reflects how out of it she really is.

It may help to remember that because they were pulled in at different times, TK is 14 and Cody is 15 and has an additional few years to watch TK develop (including the entirety of tri.). While specific incidents are meant to be vague, their dispute reflects how the direction of TK's growth may find it hard for Cody to relate to.

Ceresmon's appearance and mannerisms are all based on actual information for the creature. The part where she can summon and deliver all the goodies the river's been delivering is an extension of her powers promoting fertility and growth.

Shoutmon's line about referring to death as "deleting" is a reference to the Fusion dub... and to a lesser extent Adventure's and Data Squad's as well.

KlVFFZO4UnU  
B00D8Y8AJS


	19. 18- Title of the Song

**Neverworld**

 _Title of the song. Naive expression of love._  
 _Reluctance to accept that you are gone._  
 _Request to turn back time and rectify my wrongs._  
 _Repetition of the title of the song._  
 _\- Da Vinci's Notebook, "Title Of The Song"_

 **Episode 18**

Takato Matsuki tolerated Davis and Izzy selling his new assignment with as much of a fake smile as he could muster, but there was no way his fate could be described as anything other than annoying as hell. He "won" the draw (Izzy's word, not Takato's) to be the first to try out the new rail line connecting home with Isthmian Castle. Once there, he and Henry (the other lucky winner) would relieve Takuya and Koji for a few weeks. Davis tried to spin it as a pioneering adventure. Takato knew it was more like isolation in more dangerous territory. He didn't know how Takuya and Koji survived.

"At least you'll be prepared," Ryo said, loading two boxes of books, games and sports equipment into the lone car behind a Trailmon. "It's almost like a vacation."

"...where you run the risk of getting attacked every day," Kenta added.

"Sounds like my typical vacations."

"Then can I come with?" Jeri asked, clutching Takato's hand. "It might be nice to get away for a while." She raised her eyebrows at Izzy. "You did say I should think about stepping down."

Takato narrowed an eye, making Izzy recoil. The officer leaned in towards her, lowering his voice. "Uh... we're still getting all the information from Mikey's team, but you're not responsible for all that. I actually need your help with something here."

As Jeri slumped her shoulders, Suzie kicked one of Trailmon's wheels. Trailmon rumbled in response. "Is this thing safe?" she asked.

Izzy shrugged. "JP and Zoe swear they're reliable. Takato can let us know if they aren't."

"That's reassuring," Takato muttered.

"Wonder how this guy got around before we laid the track," Davis said.

Takato thought of protesting again, but Guilmon ran in and jumped into the train. Poking his head out, he said, "We get to go on a train ride? This'll be fun!"

"Glad you're happy." Takato sighed.

Jeri embraced Takato, peppering his face with kisses as everyone on the platform gave them space. Izzy noted all of the improvements that still needed to be made to their station. After she finished and he said goodbye to the other three, Takato boarded. Trailmon blasted its whistle and chugged through the tunnel and out of sight.

As Jeri stared at the tunnel, Kenta put a hand on her shoulder. "Cheer up, Jeri. At least you've got somebody to miss. Not like us single losers."

"Still no luck with Angie, huh?" Suzie ribbed.

Ryo chuckled. "You know, you could be like Suzie and get two guys. That way one's always around."

While Jeri tensed up, Suzie frowned. "No. Don't do that. Definitely don't do that."

"Are those two still fighting over you?" Davis asked. "And am I the only one who finds that hysterical?"

"Yes you are," Izzy said. He turned to Jeri. "Jeri, if you'd like to follow me I can explain what I want you to help with." She nodded slowly as he led her back into the castle.

Suzie followed them. "It's not like I'm doing much of anything right now," she explained.

Izzy shrugged and let her trail them. Their first stop was the library. The plan was to take a straight shot to the lounge chairs and their appointment. They didn't make it.

"Izzy!" TK popped out of the stacks. "I found that book you were asking about!" He flashed a smile at Suzie.

She returned it, a light blush forming. "What are you doing?"

TK led them to a table in the corner of the room covered in books. Along the way, Izzy explained, "The library's always been a bit disorganized since nobody puts anything back where it belongs and Sora's too busy to straighten it up. I asked TK to try to get things back in order."

"And possibly see if there's any useful books you might not know about," TK added, taking one book off a pile. He looked at the cover and snickered. "I don't see how this helps your research."

Izzy snatched it, hiding the book under his uniform. Coughing, he said, "It's an unrelated matter. But thank you."

"I could use some help if you wanted to join me." TK smiled at Suzie.

Her face lit up, but then she caught herself. "I... said I'd help Jeri with a project."

"You're fine," Izzy said. "Jeri's not working alone. She can always find you if she decides she needs more help."

"Who am I working with?" Jeri asked.

"You wanted to see me, sir?" Koichi made a beeline for Izzy, only noticing Jeri once he reached them. They looked at each other uneasily.

Izzy pointed to both of them. "Perfect timing. Let's sit down."

Leaving Suzie to TK, the three of them reached a corner of the lounge area where Izzy explained the mission: "Seeing as you two were phenomenal organizing the dance a couple months ago, I thought you'd make the perfect team for our next big event."

Koichi and Jeri stared each other for a long time before he finally answered, "What event is that?"

Izzy sighed. "Anything." He held his hands in front of him. "These last few weeks have been really rough. We need to do something to boost spirits." He turned to Jeri. "You said you were having problems lately. Maybe working on something fun like this will help out." To Koichi, he said, "And the same for you. I overheard Zoe say you've been down as well. With any luck, you two can get together and come up with something everyone can enjoy."

"Get together?" Koichi mumbled under his breath, eyeing Jeri nervously.

"Pardon?"

Koichi shook his head. "Um... well, Halloween's coming up in a couple weeks. I'm sure everyone would enjoy it if we did something around that."

Izzy grimaced. "Well... that would likely involve a large order for costumes and..."

Jeri's shoulders slumped. "You don't know if the river will send everything."

After a long hesitation, Izzy nodded. "Whatever you do can't involve a large river order. Part of what made the dance successful was the investment in equipment and formalwear. Your challenge will be to find something that doesn't require that. That's another reason I want you to help: you have the most knowledge of what we have to work with."

"We'll do our best to come up with something." Jeri said, hardly confident.

"Thank you. If you need any more help, let me know. Good luck."

Once Izzy left, both Jeri and Koichi sat in their chairs for a minute. Then they finally looked at each other. That only lasted a second before their heads darted away. Izzy was wrong; their challenge would have nothing to do with the river.

* * *

Kari Kamiya knew breaking the news to Henry was going to be a bad conversation. She had to explain, with professionalism and politeness, that he had been selected randomly in a drawing he wasn't present for to abandon his usual assignment and subsequent rest time to spend weeks in a castle with no frills and a greater risk of conflict. She then had to listen to his complaining without escalating the situation.

She looked around for support, but found only Zoe listening into the conversation, greatly amused at Henry's frustration. Davis and Izzy were seeing Takato off. Tai and Thomas were in the meeting room trying to come up with more questions for Mikey and Yolei. It had been a daily appointment since their return from the river expedition and everybody was sick of it.

When Davis returned, he saw Kari struggling, tapped her on the shoulder, took her headset and said, "Davis here. Sorry about this but man, you should have seen how much Takato took with him. You guys are gonna be fine. You two might have more fun than us! Just let us know if we forgot something. We'll hook you up. We gotta get to a meeting. Thanks for being a good sport!"

As he returned the headset to Kari, she said, "My hero. Thanks, Davis."

"Anything for you, Kari."

As he sat down, Mikey and Yolei left the meeting room, both exhausted. They stopped as Tai called out from inside, "And once again, we really need you to keep quiet about this until we figure out what to do. We don't want anyone freaking out."

"Yes, sir," Mikey grunted. He closed the door behind him to let Tai and Thomas continue conferring. He looked at Yolei and grumbled, "Does it feel like we're living the same day over again?"

"This is some sort of personal hell," Yolei answered. "And let's face it- we probably deserve it."

Izzy was next off the elevator, nodding at Yolei and quickly sitting next to Kari at Thomas's station. He pulled the book out and showed it to her, using his body to hide it from Davis or Yolei. "Got it. We're going to give it a try."

Kari leaned in and snickered. "I didn't think you were serious. You really think you can figure it out?"

"I'm reasonably confident."

Mikey wanted to listen in, but he also wanted to get on the elevator out of there. Especially with Yolei already on it.

Once the doors closed, Yolei moaned. "What direction was Ceresmon flying? Jeez, give us a break!"

He chuckled along, but asked, "Hey, is there something going on between Izzy and Kari? They seemed..." He grinned. "You know."

Yolei scoffed. "Izzy and Kari? Nah. If Kari couldn't figure things out with TK, she's hopeless. And Izzy's the best but he's terrible with girls. Back home he had the worst crush on Mimi."

"Well, doesn't everyone have a crush on Mimi?" Mikey said, smiling. "I mean, besides Ewan."

She raised a hand. "Guilty!" Calmer, she said, "But I don't know, by the time we got pulled in here, Izzy was over her. I don't know what happened and they won't talk about the time before they moved into the castle." She shrugged. "I always miss out on the fun."

"Wanna get a drink with me?" Mikey asked suddenly. "We can keep bitching about all this."

Yolei leaned back, staring into Mikey's eager eyes, but frowning. "Um... I was going to go flying with Hawkmon. I'll have to pass."

His smile didn't waver. "Darn. Because man, this sucks. Especially since we can't tell anybody what's going on."

"Yeah, but you can't argue with it. Everyone will flip if they hear the river's not working right. I don't blame them."

Mikey folded his arms. "I don't know. If they're going to put us through all that, the least they can do is be honest with everybody. Don't you think?"

The elevator doors opened. "Not really," she said as she exited.

He stepped out behind her, grabbing her hand. She froze. "Look, I just... this whole thing bugs me. I don't like what's going on with the river and I don't like keeping secrets for them. But you've been here longer. You know Tai and them better. Maybe you can explain to me why this is so important."

Yolei's eyes were closed. She wanted to get away, but keeping Mikey from letting the secret out was surely vital. It was as good a rationalization as any. Still, his hand still clutched hers. "And that's the only reason?"

"Well..." His thumb stroked the back her hand. "I don't know."

"Um, okay, well..." She pulled away. "I still have to go. But yeah, if you want to talk, let's talk. Just, uh... find me later. I'm probably free any time." Yolei took one long look at him, then lowered her head and ran out, hoping she could stop thinking about him once he was out of sight.

* * *

Cody Hida pretended to read one of his books in a lounge chair, all the while keeping an eye on the action in the library. He didn't like being the subject of gossip around the castle, especially as this "love rivalry" between him and TK was considered particularly entertaining (and harmless, given their ages). At the same time, all the talk made it easy to get information. Suzie had told him she was starting to help out around the castle. Cody had assumed she jumped back into her old position helping Sora. Tommy had clued him in on her working on the library with TK.

He got the visual confirmation he was looking for when the two of them walked out of one of the rows. They were chuckling to themselves. "The important thing is we never have to go into that section again," TK said.

"Before we do the next part, I want to grab something from the kitchen. Want anything?"

"Sure, grab me a juice." TK smiled brightly as Suzie noted the order and skipped away.

Cody saw all he needed and marched up to TK, cornering him in a row. "You're really determined to take her, aren't you?"

TK rolled his eyes, not bothering to stop his work. "I'm trying to organize books. It's a lot easier with two people."

"You really expect me to believe you're just working together and you're not thinking about anything else?"

Smirking, TK answered, "I didn't say that. I still like her. I figure whatever happens happens. But at the very least I want to be friends with her. Is there a problem with that?"

"Yes. I don't trust you with her."

TK's smile fell as he froze. His head started to shake. "I... don't know what to say to that. You don't trust me?" He turned and faced Cody. "That really hurts. I mean... we're teammates. And I didn't go into this planning to steal your girlfriend. But things happened. We'll just have to see what happens now."

"See what happens now? You want to be with her. You don't care at all about me, do you?"

"It's her call," TK said with a shrug. He added a smug grin. "Can't help it if my chances are good."

Surging forward, Cody clutched TK's shirt collar and pulled him in. Seething, he said, "Listen, TK. I don't know what I did to make you lose respect for me. Right now I wonder if I ever had it to begin with."

TK shoved him away. "You're the one not respecting anybody! I don't know why you don't like me, but for God's sake, why are you so damn protective of her!?"

"You lecturing me about protecting a girl. That's hilarious," Cody growled.

"Stop it!" Suzie shouted. Stop they did, both wide-eyed as she glared at both of them. "Out here, now!"

They shuffled out of the stacks, heads down. Suzie's eyes welled but she was in no danger of crying. "Is this how you two act around each other when I'm not around?"

"I don't know what's going on. Guess I'm new here," TK said, eyeing Cody.

"You know exactly what's going on," she barked. "I was in a bad place and you helped me and we crossed a line. I told you all of this and you didn't care. Yes, I like you. You... you saved my life. But... it's still wrong. Why don't you get that?"

TK only bowed his head and closed his eyes. Cody sighed in relief.

Suzie turned to him next. "Cody... I said I screwed up. This is my fault too. You won't let me be sorry. It's like you think if I ever talk to TK he'll sweep me away or something." She paused, eyeing TK for a while. He managed part of a smile. Suzie turned back to Cody. "You don't trust me, do you?"

"No! I..." Cody clenched his teeth. "I don't trust TK."

"Why not? TK's..." She glanced at him again. He stared back sadly. "He's a friend. And wasn't he your friend back home? How can you go after him like this?"

Suzie backpedaled, shaking her head. "You know what? To heck with both of you. I don't have to deal with this. Everybody here can imagine what I'm going through. Everybody here is willing to help me. I'm going to be okay. I just need to get away from whatever... this is." With a final huff, she said, "Goodbye." And she turned and walked away. The tears never fell.

"Suzie, wait!" Cody took several steps forward, reaching out to her. But she didn't stop. He let his hand fall in surrender.

TK didn't move. His arms were folded, his head shaking. "We probably deserved that," he said with a sigh. He approached Cody. "Hey, I didn't mean for all this to happen. I'm sorry it ended like this. Truce?"

Cody spun around and punched TK in the face. The force didn't knock him over, but TK staggered backwards and clutched his nose.

"You haven't been in this castle as long as I have." Cody's voice was a low growl. "You don't understand how hard it is when every day feels like the last one. There are times you almost wish for an attack just to break up the monotony. And it's never going to end." Cody choked back tears. "We've learned that if you find something that makes you happy here, you cling to it for as long as you possibly can."

He stared at TK, no sympathy for the blood leaking out of his nose. "Suzie made me happy. And you took that away from me." Cody rushed away, clashing against TK's shoulder as he retreated.

* * *

Yolei Inoue knew she'd have that dream again. She'd had it a few times months ago but it popped back into the rotation after Henry left her. Lately it seemed to occur every night. The one where Mikey, unsettled and desperate, knocks on her door in the middle of the night, hoping for a comfortable bed and a friendly face. She never remembered the conversation that ensues, only the part where she gently strokes the back of his head as he takes her hand. They would lean in for a kiss and it continued from there. She imagined the sorts of things he could do to her. It was a wonderful dream.

She was happy to keep it in her fantasies. In real life, this scenario was full of problems. Even with Henry out of the picture, she couldn't just be with Mikey. Not after everything he'd done. Especially not just for a night. Yolei couldn't consider him a possible boyfriend. Lately, she had been finding nothing but flaws in his personality. It didn't stop her from dreaming about him. Even worse, she knew he dreamed about her too.

As always, she heard the knock. Eyes still closed, she imagined gliding over to the door to let him in. This time the knocking continued. Yolei released her pillow and sat up. The knock came again. She swore to herself; getting out of bed and trudging to the door was far more annoying in reality. She unlocked the door and cracked it open, certain she'd find the boy of her dreams.

"You have some nerve," she muttered. Just like the dream, Mikey slumped, his eyes weary.

"I couldn't sleep. This is bugging me. I gotta get this off my chest."

"I know I said I was free any time, but this is stretching it." She snatched her door key, stuck it in the keyhole, then joined him in the hallway. "You really just want to talk?"

He shrugged, flashing half a grin. "Well, I wouldn't say that's all I _want_. But it's all I'm asking." Yolei's hand hesitated for a moment before pulling her door closed.

Once he had her full attention, he said, "We have to tell everybody. This is a serious problem and everyone needs to know what's going on. How can they hide this? How can we let them?"

"They're not hiding it," she replied, leaning against the door. "They're... trying to figure out how to tell people. They have to word it right, you know?"

"Why? Just be honest. We can take it."

Yolei was doubtful. "I don't know. Things are already pretty glum around here. I don't think we can take any more bad news. It just wears us down. How long before we start to take it out on Command?"

Mikey shrugged. "Well, if they're going to hide things from us and pretend everything's fine... it's never fine. We're stuck here. How is that fine?"

With a dismissive snort, Yolei said, "Stop it. You're starting to sound like Takuya."

He folded his arms. "What's so bad about that? At least he wants to do something about it."

"What, hiding away at that other castle? Pretending he's proving something? Leaving us to pick up all the slack putting out the fires around here?"

"Maybe we need to be more aggressive! Look around more! We scoped out the river for a week and look what we found!"

Yolei shushed him, carefully eyeing the door to Cody's room. "We got lucky this time. The last time we looked we didn't find anything. And what would have happened if Ceresmon got hostile? If we spread out too thin we're going to run into something we can't deal with. And I can't take losing anyone else."

Mikey stared back at her. She could tell he wasn't convinced, but he was in awe at her conviction. "You... really have faith in Tai, don't you?"

Staring into his eyes, she found herself short of breath, worn out from a defense she wasn't expecting to be so passionate. "I have to," she whispered. "I have to believe that he will always try to do what's best for us. Even when it looks like he's holding back. Even if it feels like he's abandoned us." She closed her eyes. "I can't think of the alternative."

As her mind drifted into dangerous territory, Mikey set his hands on her shoulders. "Yolei, what's wrong?"

Her eyes snapped open. "Mikey, please let this go. They'll run out of questions eventually and everything will be back to normal."

"Do we want normal?" He stepped closer to her, his hands clenching tighter.

"Don't try to change everything," she pleaded, setting a hand on his cheek. "Please, you have to trust him. I can't let you follow Takuya out of here. I can't let you make another mistake."

"Why not? Why does it matter to you? Do you really need to protect him so much?"

"I'm trying to protect you, stupid!" she cried.

"Well, stop it," he replied. His words came through staggered breaths. She felt every word on her lips. "You don't have to look out for me. You're making me think you want this to happen. So just tell me... right now- do you?"

"Will you stop being an idiot?" she asked as he moved in closer.

"Too late..." Mikey pressed his lips against hers.

Yolei didn't get the answer she wanted. She was too busy kissing the boy of her dreams to care. He kept pushing forward, pinning her against the door. Her only response was to squeeze him tighter, wrapping her legs around his back. At some point, he managed to tug on her door handle, swinging it open and letting them fall into her bedroom.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara felt a rush of excitement as the Trailmon entered the last tunnel. He didn't want to let on that he missed the old castle, but after two months the feeling was inevitable. He missed his old friends. He missed the constant run of games and activities they'd find or invent to entertain themselves. He missed having different things to eat every day. Takuya had to be careful not to get too sentimental. He couldn't let these things trap him here. His goal was to bring all of them back to Isthmian.

The train pulled into the station. He was happy the platform had no flourishes. Other than the lights and such mandated by the underground location, it wasn't much fancier than the rudimentary planks constructed on the other end. Tai, Thomas, the two new kids and their reborn partners waited as Takuya and Koji stepped off.

"How was the trip?" Thomas asked, not willing to let either Tai or Takuya ruin the reunion with anything rude.

"Just like old times. It was very nostalgic!" Takuya said, nodding at both Thomas and Tai.

"A little smoother, actually," Koji added. "The ones in our world defied physics."

"Um..." Tai motioned towards the two brothers. "Takuya, Koji, I'd like you to meet Matt and TK."

Takuya grinned and shook Matt and TK's hands. "Takuya Kanbara. Glad you two are okay." He patted the newly evolved Tsunomon on the head.

"Nice meeting you," TK said. "So who's rooming with whom?"

"Hold on, what?"

Matt rolled his eyes until they settled on Tai. "You didn't tell them we took their rooms?"

"They took our rooms?" Koji asked. Matt folded his arms and shook his head.

"You two left for two months. We needed to put them somewhere!" Tai said. "We already put an extra bed in both rooms. You four can work it out."

While Matt shook his head disapprovingly at Tai, TK said, "I guess it would be easiest if Matt and I took one room and-"

"No thanks," Koji interrupted. "I just spent two months alone with Takuya. I need a break."

Takuya grinned. "Yeah. I'll room with Matt if that's okay."

"That's fine." Matt kept his eyes on Tai. "Are we done then? I want to get back downstairs."

"Yeah," Tai muttered. "Thanks for showing up."

Matt walked away. TK smiled and offered to take Koji's bag. Koji refused, so TK wandered behind his brother. Thomas told the returnees about some things that needed to be discussed, but it was a conversation for another time. He and Tai returned upstairs together. It left Takuya and Koji alone to haul their bags to Ophani Tower.

"I like Matt already," Takuya said.

Koji shook his head. "Slow down, Takuya. We're here for a while. We don't have to do this overnight. I need a day to recover from eating nothing but fish for two months."

"Wait, what does that have to do with Matt?"

"Did you see the way he was looking at Tai? Something's up between those two. And if you really expect everyone to bail on Tai and join us, we need to plan this out carefully."

"Well sure." Takuya raised an eyebrow. "Why, do you think Matt can help with that?"

"We need to find out everything we can about what's been going on around here," Koji said. "If Matt's known Tai since the beginning, of course he can help with that."

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa had a fantastic vantage point to survey the mentalities of everybody in the castle. Everybody had to eat, and nobody bothered to fake emotions while in line for a hot meal. This wasn't always a good thing as the last few weeks had been rough on everybody. Even a month after the recent deaths, nothing positive had come along to lift anyone's spirits. The rise in response team activity, the tension over Takuya and Koji's return, and even the inundation of social drama, had everyone on edge. Mimi saw a lot of discouraged faces during those weeks.

That was why Kari stood out. The officers always had something to worry about, and Kari especially took every conflict personally, no matter how distant or insignificant. Mimi was in awe over how relaxed she looked, grinning at the night's offering and complimenting Tommy on the mere smell of dinner. It wasn't even a special meal; just a trusty salmon dish Mimi chose because she knew more fish would annoy the hell out of Takuya and Koji.

Mimi watched Kari sit down, alone, with an angelic smile on her face. This was suspicious, and with the line diminishing, Mimi excused herself to get to the bottom of it.

"You're in a good mood!" Mimi said, joining Kari with a plate of her own.

Kari's smile only widened. "What's going on?" Mimi had to be careful not to imply that it was not all right for Kari to be happy for no reason. She just never was.

"What do you mean?" Kari asked, keeping the smile but narrowing her eyebrows.

"Feels like all hell's breaking loose here and you're all smiles." Mimi leaned in. Now it was her turn to grin. "Did you and TK finally get together?

In an instant, Kari shirked and her smile became a scowl. "No... why would you think that?"

Mimi pouted. The denial was neither cute nor suspicious. "I can tell something good happened. You don't want to share?"

"Oh..." Kari chuckled. "Is it that obvious?" She shook her head. "It's not that good. I just had a massage, that's all."

"A massage?" Mimi raised an eyebrow. "Who's doing massages around here? Joe's get the job done but they don't put a smile on your face like that." She thought for a moment. "Oh, I bet Davis gives a good massage."

Kari shook her head. "He doesn't. I let him try once. Everything hurt for a week." She looked around the room in deliberation before answering, "Actually, it was Izzy."

"No way!" Mimi exclaimed. "That's crazy! It's like an art form. It's so personal. He'd spend the whole time searching for the spacebar."

"I'm serious. He found a book, read about all the concepts and techniques and we gave it a try today. It turned out really well."

"I'm surprised you'd have your shirt off in front of him."

Kari backed away. "What? No... no... we didn't do it like that."

"And it was still that good? Wow, where do I sign up?" Mimi caught Izzy out of the corner of her eye. He had a tray in his hands, but stood still, staring back at them with panicked eyes. She waved him forward. "Izzy, sit down!"

He did... very hesitantly, sitting next to Kari and staring at her nervously. She smiled back and said, "What?"

Mimi smiled at him too. He was petrified. "Kari says you're doing massages now."

"Well... I mean... yes..." Izzy stammered. "I'm always reading up on various skills looking for things to put to practice. It was how I learned how to beat match for that dance."

Her eyes narrowed, a sly grin remaining. "Right... you're thinking if you get good enough you'll get to put your hands on all the girls!"

While Izzy's face turned red and he shook uncontrollably, Kari chuckled. Mimi added, "Is that why you practiced on Kari first?"

"Ah, it all makes sense now!" Kari chirped.

"You know, if you could steal Nene from Matt it would solve a lot of problems..."

Izzy darted his head between the two girls. "I... I... no, I just wanted to..."

Mimi let out a huge laugh. "It's fine! In fact, I'll bite! I want one!"

"Well, I..." He looked at Kari. "I mean, I don't know if I'm ready. Or if I should be-"

"You're ready," Kari said. "I feel like I have a brand new neck. Go for it."

"Perfect, let me know when you're free." Mimi leaned in and winked at him. "We'll even do it the right way. I bet I need it. Serving two meals everyday? It goes straight to my back."

A clattering of food trays on the stage made Mimi's smile vanish. She excused herself to tend to it, patting Izzy's shoulder as she left. Izzy was still shaking. "I'm sorry," he said. "I was thinking this would be just for you."

Kari's smile remained. "What's the problem? You're pretty good at it. There's nothing wrong with helping others."

"Yeah but..." Izzy looked at Mimi, frowning. "Putting my hands all over Mimi? You're really okay with that?"

Kari only kissed him on the cheek and said, "You're cute." She took her tray and left him there.

* * *

Koji Minamoto had a very specific and important agenda to fulfill while back at the castle. He and Takuya were trying to convince as many people as they could to relocate to Isthmian, where they could attack the new continent with force. Not everyone was going to abandon Tai, of course, and the sooner the officers discovered the plan, the harder they would resist. The perfect strategy would end with twenty of them suddenly dropping what they were doing, packing their bags and jumping on the train. This was impossible, naturally, but the closer they could get to approximating this, the more likely they could get away with it without interference from upstairs.

The best place to start was the low-hanging fruit. Not only were their closest friends most likely to support the plan, they needed to reconnect after two months away. When they weren't being attacked, Isthmian was lonely and terribly dull, even for someone like Koji who didn't mind solitude. Hitting up their teammates was the first priority. For Koji, it was even more personal.

He had already gotten his reunion with Koichi out of the way, but it was unsatisfying. Over the last few weeks, he had heard how Koichi seemed withdrawn or depressed. Koji wanted to talk about it, figure out what was wrong and try to help. Koichi showed all the symptoms, but wanted no part in any therapy. This wasn't healthy, and Koji was determined to keep working on it.

Koji knocked on the door to Jeri's office after learning his brother was inside planning something with her. "Oh, hi Koji," Jeri said after opening the door.

"What's going on in here?" Koji asked, grinning at Koichi.

Koichi stood up and stared at his brother, confused. "Koji? Were you looking for me?"

"Just seeing if you wanted to catch up. Hit the bath or something."

"Oh, um... actually I need to work on this." Koichi glanced at Jeri. "We pushed this off too long already." Jeri hid her face, rubbing her neck.

"What are you working on?"

"Not sure yet!" Jeri said sheepishly. "Izzy wanted us to come up with something fun for everybody to do next week. We've been..." She and Koichi eyed each other nervously. "...brainstorming on our own for the last few days, but we still don't have any good ideas."

"Why don't you just do the usual stuff?" Koji asked. "Grill out or stuff us full of ice cream?"

"Are you kidding? After that dance?" Jeri locked eyes with Koji, her tone suddenly serious. "We raised the bar. That's what they're expecting us to bring upstairs. It's too important!"

"Important? Command's got a weird sense of what's important."

Koichi folded his arms. "Are you saying what I do isn't important?"

Koji jolted back, turning to his brother. "I didn't mean it like that. What I'm saying is they shouldn't be telling you two to concoct some way to make everybody happy."

Jeri looked down. "But everyone's been pretty out of it lately. We lost those Digimon. And Matt and TK coming back caused some problems. With you gone, Takato and the others had to pick up the slack." She eyed Koichi. "There's been... a lot of other things too." Koichi frowned at her.

"And they think some big event is going to magically make everything better? Maybe they should actually try fixing the problems. It sounds like they're trying to force everyone to be happy."

"Maybe the flaw in their plan was expecting Jeri and me to cheer everybody up," Koichi mumbled.

"So tell them that. If you aren't happy, you shouldn't have to fake it. There's a lot going on right now and you shouldn't have to help Command convince everyone things are just fine as they are."

"Koji, this is my job. This is how I contribute to the effort."

"But maybe that's not what we need right now." Koji's tone grew harsher. "Maybe we should be angry about what's going on. There are real problems right now. Don't help them pretend there aren't."

"Stop it, Koji," Jeri said. "Things are hard right now. No one's to blame for that. All we can do is hope it gets better. That's why this is so important."

"I disagree. We're getting sick of each other. It's crowded. Takuya and I are suddenly rooming with total strangers. Maybe it's time for-"

"For what? For you to live at the other castle? How does that even work? How do you get food?" Her voice grew louder, her hands gesturing more wildly. "Do you know how hard me and Sora and Mimi and JP and the others work to keep everybody fed? To make sure this place doesn't fall apart? We're not fighting but we're just as important to the team."

"Takuya and I did just fine. Your job is to make everyone comfortable. Maybe too comfortable if you ask me."

"What's wrong with being comfortable?" Jeri asked, sneering. Koichi watched them both silently.

"Comfortable doesn't get us home. Command wants us to be comfortable. I want to get out of here."

"There might not be a way home! We've been over this."

"I don't believe them. At least we don't think they've looked hard enough. Why would you just take their word for it?"

"Because..." Jeri stopped. "Well, because..."

"Because Takato trusts them, right?" Koji scoffed. "Takato's a good teammate but he's naive. Maybe you'd see things our way if we were a cartoon in your world." Jeri's mouth fell open and she backed away.

"Koji, you should go," Koichi said, standing up. He approached his brother, staring him down. "We have a lot of work to do and we're already behind."

Koji turned to Koichi, glaring back. "Koichi?"

"I won't let you talk to her like that. We're all just trying to do our jobs." Koichi took a deep breath. "I'll catch up with you later... if I'm free."

The younger brother's eyes widened. Koichi was not backing down. "Fine. Some other time," Koji mumbled weakly, backing out the door.

The moment the door was shut, Koichi trembled. He backed into a chair, putting a hand on his forehead.

"You didn't have to do that," Jeri said. "You don't have to stick up for me."

"I know, I'm sorry." Koichi shook his head. "It just sort of came out. I'll apologize to him later."

"You don't have to do that either." Jeri sat next to him and patted his back. "You need to get along with your brother, but he's wrong. I'm glad you understand that."

Koichi shuddered, leaning away from her hand. "Jeri, you know we shouldn't-"

"Shouldn't what? Why can't we go back to being friends? Friends support each other. They cheer each other up."

"They..." He looked into her eyes. "They give each other hugs..." He leaned forward, pulling her into an embrace. Koichi held her tight, her warm body already lifting him. He inhaled her scent, enjoying it for a moment before pulling away suddenly. "But we can't. It's too dangerous."

"Koichi, we're not going to get this done if we can't work together. And why can't we figure this out? I hate being away from you. I've been miserable this whole time."

"So have I." Koichi's head shook, tears forming. "But I can't pretend I'm not in love with you. I know we can't be together, but that doesn't change how I feel. Jeri, I..." He looked to the door. "I just told off my brother for you. That's how strong this is. I would do anything for you."

"Then why do we care what everyone else thinks?"

"I don't," he blurted, his arms stretched forward and pulled her in for a long, deep kiss. She prolonged it for as long as her breath held out, only pulling away when she had to, never moving more than an inch from his face.

"I don't care anymore," Koichi blurted. "Takato, Rika, my brother... I just want to be with you."

"Promise never to leave me again," she whispered.

"I swear." Their lips locked again. This time they didn't stop. They wouldn't make any progress on their event for the rest of the day.

* * *

Matt Ishida often buried himself in the basement. He was done with Sora and Tai and had little reason to spend time with the other digidestined. Instead, he and Nene and Ewan would hide away and express themselves musically. All three were writing by now, all collaborating on each other's ideas. Matt's lyrical depths, Ewan's knack for chords and Nene's ear for strong hooks made them a strong team. If nothing else was going on and one of them was inspired, they could hide downstairs and perfect a new song in a day.

He didn't talk to his new roommate the first night. He never had the chance. Ewan was on a hot streak and Nene was determined to mine it late into the night. Takuya had already crashed when Matt reached his room. The gogglehead was gone by the time Matt woke up the next morning. It was an odd feeling having a roommate all of a sudden. It was odder never speaking to him.

The next night was different. Practices were fluid, always at the whims of the three members. Ewan went from inspired to drained in one day, insisting on a day off. Nene forced Matt outside the castle, getting out into nature for fresh air and private time that was suddenly at a premium. He enjoyed the outing more than he expected. Somehow, Nene knew he would. She was getting better and better at reading him, and he liked how she showed it.

The date refreshed him, and Takuya must have noticed it when he walked in that night. "Hey, roomie!" Once again, Takuya was on the room's original bed, the one Matt had slept in even after the second one was installed. "Missed you last night."

"Band practice," Matt replied, taking off his shirt.

"Is that where you're always hiding? I didn't see you around the castle at all today."

"No, today I..." He stopped and looked at Takuya, who flashed a grin. He didn't need to know where Matt was. "I was out."

Takuya narrowed his eyes. "Out, huh? Out on a date or something?"

Matt didn't answer and finished changing into his bedclothes. Takuya persisted. "Because if you've been sleeping in my bed this whole time I need to know what you've been doing in it. Have you had any girls up here? Were you that guy Sora was holding out for?"

Annoyed, Matt answered, "Nene."

"You got Nene? Respect!" Takuya waited for any kind of reaction from Matt, but the blond laid down in his bed and grabbed a book from his nightstand. "Does this mean I can shoot for Sora now?"

"No," Matt grumbled, catching himself. He lowered his book and shook his head at Takuya. "I don't know. I guess."

"Relax. I'd probably only try it to piss off Tai."

Matt initially shrugged it off, but after a minute the curiosity got the better of him. "You don't get along with Tai?" he asked.

Takuya stretched out, tossing his arms behind his head. "We have what you'd call a difference in philosophies. Izzy and Thomas say there's no easy way home, so Tai just wants to be comfortable and not do anything. I say we're not done looking yet. What do you think?"

"I don't know what to think about him anymore," Matt said.

"Yeah you do." Takuya smirked. "You're sick of him too. I see the way you look at him."

"I don't know. Tai screws up a lot but if Izzy says nothing's out there... I don't know. I don't have all the information."

"What's the harm in looking? Sure we might run into more trouble but we can take care of ourselves. He's just scared."

"That I believe." Matt chuckled. "You should hear about all the times he messed up back home."

"Well, you should hear about all the times he messed up since you left."

Matt set his book aside and stared at Takuya. Takuya's eyes were on him, eager and ready to pounce. He smiled and popped upright. Hands on his knees, he said, "You go first."

He was confounded for a moment. Then Matt was amused. And curious. With a snicker, he said, "All right, so the island we're on splits apart and we all end up separated..."

* * *

Izzy Izumi was unable to stall any longer. He used every excuse he could to avoid Mimi's massage, but she continued to pester him. By the time she threatened to stop feeding him, he knew the effort was futile. He was going to have to get this over with, and hoped it wouldn't be as awkward as every permutation suggested it would be.

And to think he reasoned massage was such a clever idea. His desired choice of activity with Kari was never on table, but this afforded him something more hands-on while simultaneously preventing anything from getting out of hand. It was both intimate and respectable, and even offered much-needed stress relief. After the first tries, Kari was even interested in returning the favor. Izzy thought his problem was under control.

He wasn't sure who all knew about his brief crush on Mimi. It came about around the start of high school and those damn hormones that made him look at girls in a new, uncomfortable way. They spared Sora and (at the time) Kari as he saw them regularly. Mimi wasn't so lucky. Their years of hell in the Digital World killed those feelings off. In fact, the two were at each other's throats almost as much as Tai and Matt. But now that life was more stable and all the hatchets were buried, Izzy feared those old feelings could be resurrected at the worst possible time.

Mimi's door was cracked open slightly. Izzy could have barged in if he wanted, but naturally he knocked. "Mimi? It's Izzy."

"Just a moment!" she chirped from the other side. Izzy turned around, wondering what she was doing in there. His mental images turned naughty; he chided himself for them.

"All right, come in," she said after a minute. He pushed through, making sure the door closed behind him. She was on the bed, lying on her stomach, wearing a skirt... and nothing else. One look at her bare back and Izzy jumped and turned around.

"Like I said, my shoulders need the most attention," she said.

"M... Mimi? Why aren't you dressed?"

"I am. I'm dressed for a massage. I told you we could do it the right way. If you can fix Kari up with her clothes on, this is going to feel great."

Izzy forced himself to turn around. Already he was struggling to walk. "Mimi... are you sure?"

She scoffed. "Please, how long have we known each other? We're all adults here."

"We are?" He gulped. Mimi laughed, hard enough to make him turn his head in case her chest was exposed.

"Get to work. If you didn't bring any lotion, there's some on my dresser."

He stumbled retrieving it, fumbling with the bottle as he squirted some on his hands. They shook as he took a deep breath and started to rub her back.

She jolted on first contact. "Oh, that's cold." But she settled back in and let him continue. All Izzy could think about was how smooth her skin was.

This was awful. Despite how it looked, Mimi was not trying to tempt him. That was a different process entirely; she had done it before and after his inevitable clumsy retreat he would always dismiss it as a joke, never stopping to wonder if she was being honest. Here, she was in this position to receive a massage from a friend she trusted. It still flustered him to an unacceptable degree. The sensational feeling of his hands on her body made him want to feel more. She was almost entirely undressed; he wanted to see the rest. His only reprieve from these thoughts was the job he was there to do, and he did everything he could to focus on that alone.

"This is nice," she said quietly. "I mean you're no pro, but... this feels good. Kari was right."

Kari... Izzy could think about Kari to take his mind off Mimi. He tried to and it only made things worse. It only reminded him of the awful things he wanted. It was the reason he began this journey in the first place. Was this where it was supposed to lead him instead?

After twenty minutes covering every inch of Mimi's back, shoulders and neck, Izzy said, "Okay, I think I'm about done. Did you want me to hit anywhere else?" Mimi shook her head. She was at peace.

As he indulged himself with one more trip around her back, she said, "When you think about it, it's pretty amazing we're able to do this. Remember how we used to be? We were such children."

"We're still children," Izzy mumbled.

Again, her head shook, her voice serene. "We couldn't do this back home. We couldn't do this years ago. And I'm serious- you're good at this. You're full of surprises."

"There." Izzy pulled his hands away and rubbed them, exhaling loudly. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

She hummed in approval. He wasn't sure what to do next. Was he just supposed to leave? Instead he didn't budge.

Mimi sensed his hesitation. A light smile crept on her face. "Do you... need to be anywhere tonight?"

"Tonight? No," he replied quickly, only then realizing that was the wrong answer.

She turned her head his way. "You know, you don't have to go. I mean if you wanted to stick around..."

"Mimi?" he whispered, stunned. He admitted thoughts had crossed his mind, ones he tried so hard to dismiss as fantasy. They were uncontrollable now.

"Why not?" Her voice wasn't playful or flirty, or even desperate. It came from someone content with her company and not quite ready to let it end. "You're not going to tell me you don't want to."

"I... do... but..."

She chuckled. "Then let's give it a try. We both deserve a little break. And if your massages are this good..."

He froze, pleading with his mind to come up with an escape while everything else begged him forward. Finally she sighed and reached for his hand, somehow still keeping herself covered. She noticed the way he was trembling and stifled a laugh. "You are too adorable. Come on. We aren't children anymore."

As Mimi pulled him forward, he was helpless to resist. As he neared, she turned, revealing more and more of herself. Suddenly he was on the bed with her. While he let himself get lost, a small part of him remained angry. Angry that in the end, he would always remain a desperate, stupid child.

* * *

Zoe Orimoto did everything she could to avoid Takuya for as long as possible. She didn't know where she stood with him, if he was still as raw about their arguments as she was. She hid behind her job upstairs, where he wouldn't dare start anything with her with the officers around. She also had Jeremy and all the forgotten corners and closets only the engineering teams bothered to go. Zoe could hide with him while he did maintenance work. Or make out if there weren't any projects to work on.

The day he needed to work on the wiring inside the stage was a problem. His work was in the middle of everything with nowhere to hide. When she came down to visit him for lunch, Takuya finally intercepted her.

"Zoe! Finally! I've been dying to see you all week." If Takuya was still upset, he hid it well.

"Oh, Takuya!" She faked a smile as he gave her a hug. "How was Isthmian?"

"Got a minute? Let's catch up."

"Um..." She wanted to make up an excuse, but before she could think of one he was ushering her to the lounge seats. Part of her was happy he didn't hold a grudge. Another part was suspicious.

"So yeah, things are great over there," he said. "I miss all of you guys though. It's great to see you all again." He leaned in. "So what's going on upstairs? How many times has Kari broken down?"

"What?" She frowned. "Oh, no, she's been a lot better. We're getting along great."

"You and Kari are friends now?" Takuya clicked his tongue. "I have been gone too long. What, are you gonna tell me you're shacking up with Tai too?"

Zoe giggled. "No. Um... Tai's been busy with other pursuits. And I've..." She looked at the stage. She could just catch sight of Jeremy unscrewing a vent. "I'm okay too."

"Well, that's perfect. If you're in with them so much that could really help us out."

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You've got all the inside dirt. Anything going on they're not telling us? Stuff we can use?"

"You can use? Use for what?"

Takuya's grin widened. "We're finally getting out of here. Us six. And whoever else and whatever equipment we can drag along. We're going to be on our own, doing whatever we want, and figuring out what's on the other side."

Six months ago, Zoe would have been breathless. She probably would have jumped into his arms and kissed him. The thought still excited her, but her first thought was how Kari would take it.

"What, you're just going to have everyone leave and not sort it out with Tai first?"

"No way! You think he'd let us get away with this? That's why we have to keep this under wraps as long as possible."

Zoe looked away, narrowing her eyes. "Well, what would you need from me?"

"Ammo! We need as many kids on board as possible, especially if they can fight. We just have to convince them Command's holding back and they should trust us instead!"

"That's awful! You really expect everyone to believe you?"

"Not everyone. We just need to get enough to hold the fort down while we explore. Koji and I are hitting a couple people now, but we'll go after the patrol team when they're home next week. The tamers might be a bunch of suck-ups but I bet Marcus would be interested. We've got a plan. Trust us, we've had plenty of free time over there to work it out."

"But what about here? You really think we're better off split into two groups?" Zoe was searching for every objection she could.

"They'll be fine. They can fight too, you know." Takuya leaned forward and took her hand. "If it gives us a chance to find a way home, it's worth it, isn't it?"

She had to admit it sounded tempting. And this was the Takuya she loved. The one that was brave and headstrong and charming, and treated her as an ally instead of an enemy. And she did know what the officers kept from everybody. They did have secrets, and they were afraid of them getting out. She didn't let go of his hand for the longest time.

As much as she worried about betraying Kari, it was a long look at Jeremy that made her pull her hand away. "I can't. I don't always agree with the things they do, but they believe it's for the best. They really do care about all of us, even if Kari sometimes cares a little too much."

Takuya's smile fell. He didn't move, staying close to her, looking into her eyes. For once he was lost for words. "Zoe..." he finally said. "Don't you think I care? Why do you think we're doing all this? We need to keep moving forward. We need to go home."

"There's no..." She trailed off. His determined eyes made her unwilling to repeat Tai and Izzy's usual claims. As much as her mind had been changed on their characters, she could never quite agree with their conclusions.

"Don't tell you believe that." His head shook. "How long have we been teammates? How long have we had to trust each other? And how long have we sat around and talked about doing this? Getting out of here and doing things the way we want? This is finally happening. But Koji and I can't do it alone. We need you." He took her hand again. "I need you."

Zoe couldn't move. All her respect for Kari, even her feelings for Jeremy, seemed to evaporate in one push. She was trapped. Takuya was her tribe. One of their first lessons was that they were getting nowhere if they weren't unified. She had also learned long ago that he would forever drive her crazy. Whether irritation or fascination or infatuation, Zoe was linked to Takuya. He left her helpless.

"There's a problem with the river." The words flowed out of her, almost beyond her control. "It's leaving things out of orders." Her head lowered. "Nothing important yet but they're really worried about it. They sent Mikey and them out. I know they were grilling them pretty hard about some things they found." Closing her eyes, she added, "They're not supposed to talk about what they saw but..."

Takuya nodded slowly. "Talk to Mikey?"

"Talk to Mikey." Zoe felt sick to her stomach.

His smile returned. "That's perfect. I think we can get Mikey. Oh, thanks so much. I knew you'd come through for us." He pulled her forward, close enough to wrap an arm around her and kiss her.

It startled her. Her first gesture was to look over Takuya's shoulder at the stage and Jeremy. His back was turned, oblivious to what was going on. But as it continued, her eyes closed and the sensation swept her away. Of course it bothered her, but it soothed her all the same. Terrible as it was, her only thought was that this was how it was supposed to be.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 18: "Title of the Song"**  
Takuya and Koji announce their proposed split in dramatic fashion. Jeremy and JP angrily confront Zoe about her decision. Rika is torn between joining the action and staying with Ken.

" _Why? Because we're teammates? Is that still supposed to mean anything?"_

* * *

 **Author Notes  
** One of the nice things about having an 11-year gap between the arrival of the Adventure kids in the Digital World and this story is being able to account for differences between this and tri. Izzy's hard crushing on Mimi was pretty unexpected (an earlier chapter sort of contradicted it), so it's nice to be able to explain why it's not as prominent now. That said, we did promise all the pairings, so of course Koumi's going to rear its head at some point.

Yolei's loyalty to Tai has come up before, and the way she clings to it is certainly a remnant of the aftermath of tri. If anyone's looking for a follow-up to my other story Resumption, this is pretty much it, since there's no reason to think the sentiments of the 02 kids would be much different here.

Usually it would make sense to space the chapter out to set up all the subplots in the beginning and resolve them in the end, but the timing didn't quite allow that this time. The chapter spans more than a week, and the Yolei/Mikey and TK/Cody stuff happens earlier while the Izzy/Mimi action comes in after that's all resolved. Trying to mix it up would be pretty confusing.

Takuya and Koji both express their frustration at the way the tamers tend to stay loyal to Tai because of the anime in their world. That's only part of the reason (as the first team to arrive after the Adventure crew, the tamers bonded with them early and have some shared experiences like seizing the castle), but it's probably a factor. This loyalty is part of the reason Takuya had never been able to build a mandate against Tai up until now.

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	20. 19- Museum of Idiots

**Neverworld**

 **Author's Note**  
Once again, it's break time. I've been busy with my convention and other real-life stuff lately, so the new chapters haven't been coming along quite as fast as I'd have lied. Rather than have some interminable gap and kill all of the momentum, the next block will only have three chapters to tide you over while I write the last four that will end the series. We'll see you again in October, and as always, your comments are appreciated!

 _They built this whole neighborhood out of wood, out of wood._  
 _I guess I'll still be around when they burn, burn it down._  
 _I will be standing around when they burn it down._  
 _Here in the museum of idiots._  
 _\- They Might Be Giants, "Museum of Idiots"_

 **Episode 19**

Mikey Kudo was hesitant to return to the site of his past failure. He was stubborn enough to refuse to run away from his souring reputation. Consciously disobeying a direct order from Command was not in his blood. But Takuya's zeal for finding a way home, thereby saving every one of them, combined with two weeks of suppression on the river issue had left him thinking. Izzy's only response was to have complaints organized better and ask anyone affected to "bear with it for now." That wasn't good enough.

Takuya had talked to him a couple times since returning, reinforcing his pitch from before. Mikey was still interested in the plan even if he refused to commit to it. He refused to mention anything about the river. He wasn't one for civil disobedience; it was one reason he took such a shine to Shoutmon and his willingness to stir up trouble for the right cause. But even Shoutmon appreciated Mikey's dilemma. Years of being king and putting down foolhardy and disorganized revolts had given him a new respect for rebellion. His advice to Mikey was simple: "make damn sure you're right and make damn sure you can win."

Then one day Takuya forced his hand: "Zoe says something's been going on with the river that Command's not telling us. You're supposed to be the guy to talk to."

Mikey cringed. "Look, I... I'm not supposed to tell you what's going on."

Takuya gestured towards a pair of chairs. Sitting down, Takuya said, "And you're okay with them keeping you quiet?"

"No. Not at all. I hate it. But the way everyone looks at me I think I'd hate misbehaving even more." Mikey looked away and found Yolei in the corner, watching them carefully.

Takuya frowned. "But you do know something? And you're not okay with hiding it? Mikey, if we can use this, you'll be a hero. The more people we can get over there the better our chances are and we'll land more if they don't trust Tai. I mean... do you trust Tai?"

Mikey sighed and looked at Yolei again. As much as she stood up for her leader, Mikey could never feel the same way. Not after Tai wasn't upfront about Matt and TK's disappearance. Not after his stubbornness over the Odaiba Day memorial. Especially not now. He wasn't sure if Takuya was right; there was far too much his plan left to chance. But whatever Tai was doing wasn't working and it was time for something to change.

"No, not really," Mikey said. "But I need to know everything's in place to really make this work."

Takuya held his hands out. "Already told you the plans. Oh, but we've got a great way to drop this on everybody now. One that will really fire everyone up. If you've got more fuel for it, the better off we are. Get them on our side and really get Tai thinking it's the end of the world."

"No, no, I meant..." Mikey tried interrupting to say he wanted to know more about the plans for exploration. He wanted to be assured they were actually looking for something tangible.

But then he heard it- the end of the world. That was the key. Suddenly, Mikey pieced it together. The river was only a small part of the equation. The secrecy had just as much to do with the reasons behind it. There was something to find. Or rather somebody. Mikey tapped his goggles.

"The river's drying up because we killed one of the creators of the world," Mikey explained. "The patrol team met this guy named Algomon. Really nasty. He was holding Matt and TK. Killing him messed the world up." He sat back in his chair. "That's what they don't want getting out: killing these creators ends the world. That's what we need to do."

"Whoa, I didn't mean that literally! We don't actually want to end the world," Takuya said. "I've seen it happen. It isn't pretty."

"But it's..." Mikey's mind was racing. He stood up excitedly. "Look, I've gotta think about this some more. Make sure I'm not crazy. But yeah- river's not working. They won't spill. We got a huge clue about this world and they won't talk about it. Spread the word."

Takuya grinned. Mikey was already dashing off. The digidestined saluted. "Will do, buddy."

As Mikey ran past Yolei, she grabbed his sleeve. "What did you tell him?" she cried.

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I told him what I needed to."

"Tell him what?! Mikey, you didn't!"

"That's how it works in these worlds- we defeat the enemies, we go home." Mikey grinned wildly. "That's why Command doesn't want us to talk. They don't want us to realize that we just found them."

Yolei's mouth fell open as he ran back to his room. She thought they had gotten their feelings out together. She thought they had reached a place of understanding where they could leave all the doubt and tension at the bedroom door. Now she feared that all she did was renew his confidence. Had she tamed a beast or created a monster?

* * *

Nene Amano's voice rang out over the cheers, echoing throughout the hall as the concert built to a climax. For all of Matt's deep lyrics, Ewan's chord concepts or even the piano accompaniment they talked Yoshi into providing, nobody had anticipated the factor that really took the show to another level: this girl had pipes. Now she had songs worthy of them and a receptive audience.

Koichi and Jeri could barely contain their excitement. Jeri had rejected the idea at first; she was too close to Sora to endorse anything supporting Matt and Nene's relationship. But Koichi had convinced her it was the only good solution. The music was too good, and all the equipment was already on hand from either the dance or the disastrous Etemon concert. Koichi patted Jeri on the leg and smiled; this was turning into a rousing success.

There were a few holdouts, of course. Tai and Sora and even Mimi lingered in the back, unable to fully appreciate the show but unwilling to ruin anyone else's fun. Everyone else, even other digidestined Jeri had assumed were loyal to Sora, were into it. Izzy and Kari were thrilled, as much at the audience as the performers. Kari and Tentomon even took sets of glowsticks Jeremy had fashioned and let him show them choreography. Zoe scoffed at them, but watched the performers with just as much enthusiasm.

On stage, Nene and Matt were in their element under the lights. Their completely unique styles and experiences meshed into a sound they could call theirs. Nobody in the human world would ever hear it, but all that mattered to them was getting it out to somebody. The cheering more than did the trick. No matter what sort of success or how big the crowds were back home, this was a new high.

After finishing the penultimate song, Nene waved at the crowd and said, "Thank you! We are Midnight Machete!" She paused to let the cheers sink in. "I'm having such a great time here! You guys are amazing!" She forced herself to keep her smile painted on as she mentally cringed at her use of stock concert banter phrases. This was a place to be more personable. She looked at Matt. He poked his head up from his bass and returned a grim nod.

Her smile faded as she addressed the microphone. She took a deep breath and said, "Sadly, this is our last song here tonight. It may be a while before we get another chance to play here... but we really hope we get a chance to play for everybody over at Isthmian Castle!"

There were a lot of blank stares, a few murmurs, and Kari's glowsticks clanged against the floor. She also heard a few isolated cheers. It encouraged her to go on. "Yes... I know it sounds crazy. But things are changing around here. I know Matt and I haven't been here as long as you all, but look around at how things are and ask yourself if this is how we should really be living. Shouldn't we be exploring? Are we really content spending forever cooped up here?"

Matt nodded. "Content won't work. Not when the things keeping us alive are failing. Your river? It's losing its power. There's nothing we can do about it. Upstairs they didn't want that to get out." He took a long breath. "They're scared. Scared of what it means for us. Scared of how you'll all react." He looked for certain faces in the crowd, but didn't spot who he wanted. "Is that who you want leading you?"

Tai was already along the wall, marching to the stage, hand balled into a fist. Only a tug on his collar stopped him from jumping up there and escalating a confrontation. He turned around, ready to slug the obstacle. That would have been a bad idea against Marcus.

He glared at Matt on stage, watching with scorn as the bass player elaborated on the moving plans. "Don't make this worse." Marcus let go of Tai. "Don't think we're all so dumb that we'd ditch you without thinking first. Be bigger." Tai sighed, folding his arms and leaning against the wall to watch the rest of his demise.

It was Nene's turn again: "This is going to be a hard week for all of us, but I'm sure we'll all be fine. So here we go, one last song. I want to hear you all at your loudest!" She nodded to her brother, who stared back dumbfounded before stomping on the hi-hat pedal to begin the finale. Once the guitars came in, the cheering resumed like nothing had happened.

Once they finished that song and took their bows and the requisite encore performance, the four performers exited the stage, taking a breather behind the curtains. Nene couldn't contain her excitement, clutching Matt and planting a long kiss on his lips. Yoshi didn't stick around to say anything to them before leaving. Ewan didn't want to.

"This was amazing. I knew those songs were good!" Nene gushed. "Those producers don't know anything, do they?"

Matt smiled back. "There's a couple spots I could tinker with but overall it sounded great. It's a good feeling, isn't it?" She beamed, staring into his eyes, not letting go of him.

"Um... hey..." Ewan interrupted their moment, eyes cast aside. "You're both really serious about going?"

Nene looked at him, nodding. "Yes. I thought Mikey would have talked to you about it. We just..." She glanced at Matt. "There's just a lot of hostility with the leadership right now and a change of scenery might do everyone a little good." She chuckled. "Hope you didn't mind our interruption. We were told a little showmanship might help the effort along."

"I don't buy it." Ewan shook his head, freezing Nene's exuberance. "I think Mikey and Takuya are reaching too much. And I don't want to be on the front lines of anything. If you two are going, you're going without me."

"But... Ewan..." Nene frowned, unable to come up with a response. She had answers for all the questions and challenges she knew she'd face, except from the one person she was closest to.

"That's okay," Matt said. He put a hand on Ewan's shoulder. "TK's not going either. You need to do your own thing. She knows you can take care of yourself."

"You're not disappointed?" Ewan looked at Nene sadly.

Nene sighed, but answered, "Of course not." She hugged both guys. Ewan smiled at them once before heading out, leaving the two in each others arms.

"I wasn't ready for that," she said, nuzzling under Matt's chin.

He stroked her hair. "They'll be fine. They're out of trouble. But we... we need to get out of here. Get away from all this." She nodded along.

"We put on a hell of a last show though. Nothing can take away the excitement of all that. I still have goosebumps." She kissed him, releasing only for a moment before returning for more. For deeper. "So do we kick out Angie or Takuya tonight?"

"I don't know," Matt said. "I need a shower first."

Nene pulled him in closer, a devious smile on her face. "Even better."

They walked away, Nene clutching Matt's hand. Along the way, he chuckled. When asked, he said, "That's rock and roll for you. One gig and we already lost our drummer."

* * *

Koichi Kimura didn't think much about the big announcement afterwards. It surprised him, sure, and annoyed him a little bit, but his future was clear and he was just satisfied to get through an event unscathed for once. It wasn't until later, when Kari pulled him and Jeri out of teardown duty for a meeting upstairs, that the gravity of the situation sank in. Kari was nervous, as if the words "Tai wants to talk to you right away" was like telling someone their cat died.

Kari didn't speak to them on the elevator, worrying him further. Her presence also made it unwise to squeeze Jeri's hand the way he wanted to. The other four officers were in a huddle in a control room, with only Thomas seated. Tai saw Koichi and Jeri and pointed to the meeting room. They entered, sat down and looked at each other nervously.

Tai marched in behind them, slammed the door shut, made his way to the other side of the table and planted his hands on it. "What the hell just happened?"

Both Koichi and Jeri leaned back. Tai's eyes darted rapidly between the two. "I can't believe you two. Letting them go up there and say all that? Do you have any idea how bad this is?!"

"We didn't know anything about this." Koichi raised his hands in defense.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Tai grunted. "Takuya and Koji obviously put them up to this. They knew everyone would be listening and..." He pounded the table, breathing heavily.

"Maybe they did, but I..." Koichi's hands shook. "I swear they didn't tell me."

Tai didn't care, angrily barking out questions. "Why else would you let them play to begin with? Matt's being such an ass right now and-"

"It was all we had. Izzy said we needed to lift spirits and-"

"That was so they _don't_ bail on us!" Tai threw his hands up. "Now everyone's going to run over to their side!"

"You don't know that," Jeri said, trying to remain calm. "Maybe they'll still believe in you. I do."

"Maybe..." Tai moaned. "But why give them a voice? Why chance it? This band of theirs is a touchy subject anyway. For all that Sora's done to stick up for you-"

"Tai..." Jeri gasped. She wasn't ready for him to turn on her. "I know it's caused problems and I feel terrible for Sora but we had to look at the big picture. We needed something. We..." Tai turned away, shaking his had angrily. Whatever she was going to say, he was done listening. Instead, she asked, "Are you okay?"

"No..." he mumbled. "We can't just split apart like this. Do you have any idea what could happen?" Koichi shook his head. "Our stability in this world depends on us sticking together." Tai's breathing grew more staggered, his voice raising. "But you go and let Matt... and Takuya... and your damn brother-"

"We didn't let anyone do anything!" Koichi shouted, silencing Tai even as the commander glared back, shocked at the interruption. Standing, Koichi was suddenly stern and fearless. "Matt's right: you are scared. Scared to go after him. Or Takuya. It's easier to blame us, isn't it?"

"You really expect me to believe Koji didn't tell you about this?"

"He didn't!"

"Quit lying!" Tai jumped to his feet, leaning forward as much as the table would let him, eyes wide and furious at Koichi. Koichi did not back down.

Jeri cowered as two normally peaceful boys suddenly locked horns. She peeked outside; Davis and Kari were looking in. Davis saw Jeri's face, patted Kari's shoulder and threw the door open.

"Cut it out, Tai," he said. It took a moment, but Tai eventually broke his glare and found his lieutenant. He sunk into his chair and huddled over, head falling to the table.

Kari wrapped her arms around her brother as he sobbed, "It's all over..." She just closed her eyes and held him.

Davis sighed, then looked at Koichi and Jeri. "Just go."

It took a moment for Jeri to stand, but she and Koichi shuffled out. She touched Davis's arm. "I swear we didn't know."

Shaking his head, Davis replied, "Doesn't matter, really."

As soon as the elevator doors closed behind them, Jeri buried her head in Koichi's chest. "This is terrible," she mumbled. "I wish I could stay with you tonight. But I'm sure Rika would get suspicious."

Koichi didn't respond. His eyes were fixed on the elevator wall as it descended. He realized he wasn't just angry at Tai for accusing him and Jeri of being involved. He was angry at his concert being co-opted, angry at his brother's dissidence, and angry that he couldn't properly vent with the girl he loved. He only clutched Jeri for as long as he could.

She looked up and saw the anger in his eyes. "Koichi? Are you feeling okay?"

The elevator bell split them apart as the doors opened. Koji was waiting for them. "Koji?" Koichi mumbled, stepping out.

"They didn't grill you too hard, did they?"

Koichi only narrowed his eyes and walked past. Koji turned around and said, "I'm sorry." Koichi stopped. "I never thought they'd go after you. You didn't deserve that."

"So you and Takuya really were behind that?"

"It was Takuya's idea. Everybody got the message. We'll have more than enough now." Koji nodded at Jeri. "Even pulled some of your team on board." She backed away, frowning.

"And you didn't think to warn me? To keep me in the loop?" Koichi shook his head in frustration. "You just left me to dangle..."

"Tai had no right to blame you two! He's the one out of line." Koji scoffed and walked away. "Whatever. In a week we'll be out of here and you won't have to deal with him again."

At first, Koichi let his brother keep walking. But he was still angry. Koji may have been willing to leave him out of his plans, but he was not going to be so impolite.

"I'm not going," Koichi called out. Koji froze.

The younger brother turned around. His mouth hung open. "What do you mean you're not going?"

"I'm not going with you and Takuya to the other castle," Koichi repeated. "Did you ask me if I wanted to? I wouldn't do much good over there anyway. It's not like I can fight."

"But Koichi... it's not like you can't help out. We need as many people as we can."

"You seemed to do just fine when you left us all for two months. You left us here wondering if you're doing okay. Not bothering to check up on us. And then you come back and expect us all to just follow you to this place? Why? Because we're teammates? Is that still supposed to mean anything?"

"How about because we're brothers?" Koji returned to Koichi.

He didn't expect an outburst: "Brothers don't abandon each other! Brothers don't just assume I'll be fine with your crazy plans! Brothers don't hijack my events to push some stupid agenda!"

Koji didn't back down. "We're trying to make things better for everyone! You know what everyone here thinks of your work. No one appreciates you! Don't act like you're happy here."

"No! I'm not! But running away to that other castle won't fix anything. Here..." He quickly glanced at Jeri. "Here I have a chance. Go ahead and leave, Koji. Just don't expect me to follow you."

Koji fished for a response. He stared at Koichi, expecting his older twin to relent. Koichi waited it out. Finally, Koji just snorted, turned around and walked away.

Still Koichi didn't move. Jeri put a hand on his arm. "Koichi? Are you okay?"

He turned, clasped her face and brought her in for a deep kiss. In the middle of the hallway, with the chance for prying eyes around every corner. He no longer cared. Koichi ended the kiss but held his head close to hers. "Am I feeling okay? I feel great."

Koichi pulled her away, leading her back to his room in Ophani Tower. She tried to stop him. "Koichi, wait! What about Rika?"

He stopped and stared at her. "To hell with Rika," he spat.

* * *

Christopher Aonuma was never going to turn down an excursion outside the castle, no matter how false the pretenses were. He and Ken flew on MailBirdramon to some secluded corner of the continent Rika had learned about on patrol. It was a nice afternoon retreat, and a chance to escape the chaos still rippling from the previous night's bombshell. It was also unmistakably a date, with Christopher providing both the transportation and the cover to make it seem like it was just friends going out. This was laughable: everyone in the castle knew about Ken and Rika; they were more likely to be surprised to learn Ken and Christopher had actually become friends.

Even worse, he wasn't the only one roped into this: Sunflowmon carried the rest of the party. With Yoshi on the trip, this felt more like a double date. Neither Ken nor Rika picked up on this.

Sunflowmon landed on the banks of a lake several miles away from the castle, near a large growth of trees. No doubt it was a nice spot; Christopher contemplated building a campfire and a fishing pole the moment they landed. He'd probably need both to distract himself from Ken and Rika's sad efforts at being romantic. Surely Yoshi wasn't going to do the job.

Yoshi narrowed her eyes at Christopher as she asked Rika, "So why us? If you just needed some fliers, you could have asked Yolei."

Christopher snickered. "Yeah, bring the ex. That's a good idea."

"What does that have to do with anything?!" Yoshi exclaimed. "This isn't a date!" She turned to Rika sharply. "Is this a date?"

Rika looked away, scratching her shoulder uneasily. Yoshi narrowed her eyes. "Oh, you're gonna owe me..."

All the same, the four of them (plus Digimon) ate the lunch they had brought as if it was just any other outing. Wormmon did what he could to keep Ken and Rika at a distance. Lalamon did what she could to get them closer together just to aggravate Yoshi. Rika was used to this sort of thing by now and paid neither of them any attention.

Instead, and it could have just as easily made things more awkward, she brought up the touchy subject: "I guess no one wants to talk about last night, but come on..." She looked at Yoshi. "Did you know that was going to happen?"

Yoshi groaned. "No, Ewan and I didn't have a clue. I sure hope that was worth it because it pissed a lot of people off. I'm one of them."

"So who's all going?" Christopher asked. Everybody paused and glared at him. "Mikey's pushing me pretty hard. If he and Nene are already on board, I have to admit it's intriguing."

"Are you serious?" Rika asked. "A bozo like Takuya's just going to get you all killed." She scoffed. "Tai's a moron too but at least he's trying to keep us alive."

Nodding, Yoshi said, "Why would you think charging blindly into the wilderness is a good idea? I mean, Marcus even has reservations. That's saying something."

"It's an awful idea," Christopher answered. "And Mikey's definitely on his goody-good kick here, so I know he's not using his brain. It's still a tough call... I guess I've never been one for staying idle." He raised eyebrows at Ken and Rika. "I'm surprised you two are."

"Ken's very happy staying idle," Wormmon insisted. Rika didn't answer. She just looked away, scowling.

After eating, as Ken and Rika cleaned up and Yoshi dipped her feet into the water, Christopher assembled his fishing pole and dropped his line into the lake. He only got a few minutes of solitude before Ken and Wormmon approached him.

"Um, Christopher? Rika and I might, uh... go for a hike in the woods."

"I'll allow it," Christopher replied without looking.

Ken smiled. "Just in case you're wondering where we went. Wormmon's going to stay here. We'll be back in... I don't know."

Christopher still didn't look at him. "Have fun."

After the two left and Wormmon grew sufficiently bored and antsy, he asked, "Anything biting?"

"No..." The Blue Flare general turned to Wormmon and smirked. "Maybe I'd do better with live bait."

"That's not funny."

Christopher returned to his fishing, smirk intact. Yoshi waded towards him, disrupting the water and ensuring he would never get a bite. Not that he cared much.

"What happened to Ken and Rika?" she asked.

"They ran off to make out."

"Figures," she moaned. She stepped out of the water and sat next to Christopher. "This whole thing was just an excuse for them to be alone?"

"I'm not letting them do any of that in my room."

Yoshi gave a resigned nod. "Or hers. Those walls aren't soundproof."

They sat in silence for minutes. Christopher was content pretending fishing needed any sort of concentration or he had any real possibility of catching something. But Yoshi just stared out into the water. There was no contentment on her face. Lalamon floated in too close and Yoshi pulled her in and clutched her. He looked over and saw the slightest quiver in her lip.

Finally, Christopher handed his pole to Wormmon, turned to her and asked, "Do they bother you that much?"

"What?" she snapped back. Her anger left when he saw no smugness on his face. "No, I mean good for them I guess. But... those two are awkward as hell and somehow figured it out. It's just..."

"Jealous?" He expected an outburst. Instead she paused and pondered the question.

"Jealous of what? That you kids can actually get involved with each other while I can't stop seeing all of you as children?" She huffed. "Yeah, I'm totally jealous." Yoshi turned to him. "I mean, can you imagine having to live forever, not getting any older, and not being into anybody around you, no matter how much you want to?"

"Takuya seems to think we won't be here forever."

"Takuya and 'think' don't go together." Yoshi grunted. "You're seriously considering this, aren't you? For a second I thought you weren't an idiot. I suppose-"

He leaned forward and kissed her. Yoshi froze in panic, her eyes bulging as their lips pressed together. Christopher pulled away and faced the lake again.

She needed a moment to compose herself, but he got the outburst he'd been anticipating. "The hell was that?!" He didn't respond. "You know people have lost river credits for doing less than that!"

Smirking, he replied, "Some good those river credits have been doing lately."

Before she could lash out any more, Rika called out, "Wormmon, you're supposed to be on the other end!"

"Still not funny," Wormmon muttered, dropping the pole and rejoining Ken.

Christopher followed, leaving Yoshi dumbfounded on the riverbank. "That was faster than I expected," he said.

"We..." Ken and Rika eyed each other nervously. "We didn't... walk... as far as you may have thought."

Rika walked up to Yoshi, sitting next to her on the bank. "What's with you?"

Yoshi leaned forward, frowning. "Christopher's an idiot."

"Is this news? Whatever he said, don't think about it." Rika stared out at the water. She was frowning too.

With a hushed voice, she repeated, "Whatever Christopher said... don't think about it."

* * *

Tai Kamiya felt helpless as the world fell apart. He didn't sleep well the next couple days, waking up several times and eventually giving up early in the morning and heading downstairs. Already several of the tables in the hall were gone and several boxes lined the walls. He woke up Agumon for a walk outside the castle. Usually expressing his problems with his partner came easily. Now he was barely able to say a word.

"They'll be all right, Tai," Agumon said.

Tai shook his head. That wasn't it. Not that he was convinced they would be, but it was something different. "Everyone's deserting me," he said. "I've spent all these years looking out for everybody, just trying to do what's best. This is what I get for it." With a sigh, he said, "And now they're going to go get themselves killed just because they don't trust me."

Agumon patted Tai's back. "It's not your fault. They're just being dumb."

"Dumb or not, it still falls on me. I let them down."

"They're not gone yet."

He stared into the distance for a while. It was true; this had sprung up on him so quickly and his reaction had been so bad he never got a proper chance to change minds. Even if he couldn't prevent everyone from leaving, he had to protect whomever he could. This was his job as commander.

After returning, he saw Takuya at one of the remaining tables, hunched over breakfast. Tai's first thought was to ignore him, but as he entered the room he saw Takuya's company- Matt and Nene. Suddenly, before Tai could think better of it, he was approaching them. He had always anticipated Takuya causing trouble. Matt was a different story.

While the two boys pretended not to notice, Nene practically flagged him down. "Good morning, Tai," she said politely. "We've been discussing with Izzy about what equipment is going where, and we have most of our proposals figured out, but books and recreational items may become tricky. Any thoughts?"

Tai stared at her. He shook his head and sat down, ignoring her. "Do you guys even realize what you're doing?"

"Yep!" Takuya replied, not looking down. "Something we should have done years ago."

"Look, I get it. There's an unexplored continent. Everyone's first thought is to go see what's out there. But you have no idea how bad it's going to be! It's gotta be even more dangerous than this place was before we got it under control. It's not a playground. You can't go out there thinking it'll be a piece of cake to tame it like it's some..." Tai was too angry to find the right words.

"Frontier?" Nene suggested.

"Don't romanticize it!" Tai turned back to Takuya. "The kind of stuff you'll run into out there isn't going to just fall down for you. And I know you won't find anything that'll help us."

"You know what?" Takuya slid out of his chair and stood up. "Why don't you let us figure that out for ourselves? I'm sick of hearing theories about this. Let's find out for sure."

"Yeah, and get yourself killed in the process!" Tai shouted back.

Takuya walked away, but turned back around after a few paces. "I don't know why you don't believe in us all of a sudden, but we can do whatever we want. We saved the world too, remember. Don't think getting here first means we have to answer to you. Stop acting surprised we don't all kiss your ass like Davis and Takato."

Tai fumed, but resisted the urge to snap back at him. It was probably what Takuya wanted. Takuya only huffed and walked away. Instead, Tai turned to his fellow Odaiba digidestined. Matt still had his head down. Nene was shaking her head, smiling calmly. "I will admit Takuya's not very tactful. He's lucky to have us around."

Again, Tai ignored her. "You too, Matt?" he asked. "I've been dealing with this crap from Takuya since he got here but you?" He shook his head angrily. "This isn't one of our usual fights, Matt. This world is still dangerous. The only reason it's so calm around here is because there's enough of us to control it. He's throwing that all away!"

Matt finally looked up at him. "You think any of that means anything to me? I'm sure I should care about all this. It's a lot better than it used to be. But I didn't build it. This isn't home. This isn't normal."

"Matt, if you want normal so bad, why are you running from it?"

"Maybe I want a new normal. Maybe I need to start over." He eyed Nene. "Maybe I'd be happier just forgetting about you and Sora and the others." She put a hand on his shoulder. "You guys made all this without me. You all seemed happy. You can go right back to being happy without me."

"We weren't happy without you!" Tai shouted. "You were the one thing we were missing! How can you just run away from us like this?"

"How can you just hide?!" Matt glowered. "You guys can be safe and comfortable, but is it getting you anywhere? Is it getting us home?"

Tai clenched his teeth. "You think we're not doing anything?! Takuya acts like we're just sitting around. We're trying to figure this world out! That means figuring out how we all got here and how we're all connected. We can't just run around blindly getting into trouble. And we are learning stuff! TK has memories about Marcus somehow." He looked at Nene. "Did you tell him about Quartzmon? How we all appeared in your world?"

"You met us before?" Matt asked her.

She nodded. "We did. You and Tai did a double-fusion. It was hot." Nene turned back to Tai. "But what did it mean?"

Tai thought he'd blurt out an answer. It never came out. He never followed up on Izzy's research. "I don't know, talk to Izzy. But we're getting pieces! We just need to keep putting them together."

Matt shook his head and scooted his chair back. "Well, when you find something, let me know. I need to be somewhere else right now." He stood and walked out.

Nene got up to follow him, but Tai grabbed her arm. "C'mon, Nene. You're smart. You can't believe all that stuff Takuya's pushing. What's this about?"

She pulled her arm away, but looked down. "You're right. I have no idea if Takuya's plan has any merit. But what I do know is in a situation like this, we need to do what it takes to make ourselves happy. And with all that's happened, Matt isn't happy. He needs a new start." Nene started to leave, but stopped. Her back still to him, she said, "Remember that you had your chance to be happy. And you threw it away. At least Takuya's brave enough to go after it."

* * *

Tommy Himi didn't want to talk about it. Two days into the big move and it was all anyone discussed. The kitchen was going to be impacted, of course. They had to divide the equipment to provide meals for both castles; they couldn't trust the river to provide new ovens and refrigerators to Isthmian. Half of the kitchen needed to be moved in a way that kept both functional. Thankfully, half of everything in the castle needed to be moved and Tommy could stall as long as possible.

As always, he did the dishes after lunch as Mimi took a break. Usually this meant getting out of the kitchen, either spending some time with Palmon or her friends. This week she hid in her office. Tommy let her. It was only a matter of time before she'd step out and stand next to him, silently helping him dry the last few plates. Once they finished, neither moved.

"You're leaving... aren't you?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Just like that, he had to talk about it. His eyes welled up. "It's not you guys. I love you guys. I love working with you. I just..." How could he describe it? He was loyal to his team. He was loyal to Takuya. Takuya was the big brother Tommy needed. The one that helped him get closer to the brother he actually had. It was the proudest experience of his life, and he had unique skills they would need over there. He had to.

"Go," she said, wiping her eyes. "They'll need you. I hate Takuya so much for this but you need to keep them eating right. They'll forget without you."

"I don't know if I can do it alone..." he whimpered.

"You can. You're gonna be great." She grew a faint smile. "And you're gonna keep me up on what's going on over there, right?"

"Mimi!" Tommy cried, diving forward and throwing his arms around her. She squeezed him back, rubbing the back of his head as he bawled. It was the easiest way to keep him from seeing her own tears.

* * *

Izzy Izumi was secretly glad to have something else to worry about. The move was a logistical barrage hitting everybody in Command. All the equipment in the castle needed to either go or stay, with no impartial arbiter making these decisions. He had to figure out what both sides needed, come to a decision that seemed fair, then convince Takuya or Koji why his conclusions were more legitimate than their suggestions. It exhausted him.

He found it ironic how this split that represented such an indictment against the leadership of the five officers demonstrated why they were in their positions. As awful as this was, Izzy and Thomas knew they needed to give Isthmian as much of a chance as possible. They needed to stay healthy, have access to vital information about the world, and count on mutual cooperation in times of serious trouble. Command had to be professional and treat this as an extension of operations, albeit one they had no power over, was committed to a movement that was strategically irresponsible, and whose very existence rebuked them.

Of course, this wore all of them out. Tai and Davis had to keep their tempers in check while convincing as many people to stay as possible. Kari had to act as a messenger between the two sides, smiling and communicating with the same people that never failed to criticize her or her brother. She needed Izzy more than ever, if only to hide from her responsibilities for an hour every night.

On her bed, as she cuddled up in his arms, Izzy wished he could enjoy her presence in the same way. As far as she knew, he gave Mimi her massage like a professional and had no reason to be suspicious or even jealous. If Mimi did tell anybody, it hadn't gotten back to Kari yet. She was oblivious to his crime, now trusting him as one of the few sources of stability left in the world.

"This is all going to be okay... right?" she mumbled. He rubbed her head, refusing to answer. It didn't matter: within a minute she was asleep.

Once again, he had done something terrible to her without her knowing it. Kari had become an object of affection, then desire, and impossibly he won her without deserving it. Neither of them had any idea what they were doing in a relationship. It was a foreign concept to both and they made it up as they went along. Her path saw peace, trust and comfort. His saw infatuation and chaos.

There was no escape. At some point, he was going to hurt her again. One day she would feel it. He was destined to break her heart and capable of worse. Izzy didn't want to see her suffer, even worse at the hands of someone she trusted in so completely. He never understood how she trusted him so much. He stopped trusting in himself weeks ago.

The first night after Nene and Matt dropped the bomb on stage, Izzy and Kari laid in bed just like this and talked about why anyone would want to follow Takuya into the unknown. It seemed like such an impossible selling point- sacrifice comfort and security for a harsher life with more danger and no promised results? How could someone, especially Matt of all people, volunteer for that?

At the same time, Izzy could tell Matt was restless; it was evident from his music and the friends he spent his time with that he needed out. His relationships with Tai and Sora had fractured, with no reconciliation in sight. Matt was tired of being hurt. Just as likely, he was tired of hurting them. In that sense, Izzy could understand how Matt didn't see it as a question of which life was better. No matter what the conditions were at Isthmian, it was a way out.

* * *

Rika Nonaka couldn't stop thinking about what Christopher had said. She had no reason to think Takuya knew what he was doing. The patrol team ran into enough scrapes already, and that was in familiar, tamed territory. She knew exactly how dangerous venturing into the fog would be.

Still, she couldn't shake Christopher's accusation of staying idle. She never stayed idle. Rika stayed in control. Why else would she put up with being on the road for three weeks at a time? Being on the patrol team meant long hikes, nasty environments, dirty jobs, fights that put her and Renamon's lives at risk, and doing it all alongside the likes of Marcus. All of this sounded better than spending every day around the castle doing the same thing.

But while the patrol team was important to maintaining peace on the continent, it wasn't driving anybody forward. Every month had the same hotbeds of evil activity, dungeons that all looked the same, and villages that always seemed to be in on the verge of crisis. It wasn't routine, but it wasn't progress.

She thought Takuya was an awful choice to lead them into the wild, but his path was the new front line. That was where the action was going to be, and with it the slightest possibility of moving forward. Didn't she belong there? Rika was committed to fight for the cause, and if the fight was shifting she felt an obligation to follow it, no matter who was in charge.

It sounded crazy, especially with most of her friends, particularly Ken, staying behind. As she paced the castle, wrestling with her choices, she saw Marcus sitting on the wall of the bridge outside Leo Tower. He stared forward, deep in thought. Whether he was having the same dilemma or something completely unrelated she'd never comprehend, she couldn't resist interrupting him.

"What's with you?" she asked, leaning against the wall next to him.

"Takuya's really made a mess of it now, huh?" He shook his head. "Stirring up trouble on the other side? Splitting up the team? Doing the exact opposite of what Thomas says is smart?"

"Since when have you ever listened to Thomas?"

"He's the smartest guy here. If my gut doesn't say otherwise, he's probably right."

She frowned. Now it was her turn to stare at the mountain cliff fencing in the castle. "Dammit, why can't we just ignore this idiot? We know he's full of it. We know it's going to be a disaster. This is so stupid."

"Yeah," he huffed. "That's why we're going, aren't we?"

Rika looked up at him in shock. He was still staring forward. "This is who we are," he explained. "We're fighters. You and me and Agumon and Renamon. We need to be out there no matter what."

Her head dropped, her chin falling against the stone wall. "We don't need to look for trouble like this."

"Out of our hands. If Takuya's gonna stir it up, we need to be there saving his ass. That's what we do. I already talked to Thomas and Tai. They said it wouldn't be a bad idea having me around to keep them in line." Marcus grinned. "I don't think I can do it alone."

She sighed. For everything precious to her here, it sounded so right. This was their calling. She and Renamon would never be satisfied staying put while others were getting into more danger. Rika knew she had to go with them, no matter how much it hurt.

Without looking, Marcus clutched her shoulder and pulled her close to him, cradling her head. She couldn't fight it. Rika wasn't sure if he knew how involved she was with Ken. Or how she was closer to Jeri than she'd admit. Or how deep down she worried about disappointing Takato with her decision. All Marcus knew was she was leaving behind a lot, and that she would need him even more after she did.

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda was about to do something stupid. For someone who took her status as the oldest castle resident very seriously, this did not come lightly. She could barely tolerate stupidity, and she witnessed plenty of it working with Marcus and Kazu. To weigh her options, then consciously act in such a brash fashion was betraying herself. She didn't care.

She saw Christopher alone outside, walked up to him, got his attention, then kissed him back. It was fast, strong and shallow, and she shoved him back after only a couple seconds.

He folded his arms, narrowing an eyebrow. "I'll admit I wasn't expecting that."

Yoshi sneered. "You win. I'm in. You want to make this a thing? Let's do it."

"How romantic," he deadpanned. "Why the change of heart?"

"Because it's not like I have any other options. And you... you know, you're not as bad as everyone thinks. You won't admit it, but you care about your Digimon. You care about your friends. You're... well, at least you're out of high school." She sighed. "I dated a lot worse back home, let's just say that."

"With that kind of flattery, I'm shocked you couldn't do better."

She clenched her teeth. "I'm giving you a shot, okay? Do you want to try it or not?"

Christopher stared at her for a while, then turned around and said, "I'm heading out with Takuya and them."

Yoshi's shoulders slumped. "W... what? But... but you said yourself it was an awful idea."

"I also don't want to stick around and do nothing. Especially if Mikey and Nene are leaving. We're sort of a package deal. Only at full power if we're all together on the same page."

Looking down, she asked, "But otherwise you might have been interested?"

"Never thought about it." Christopher shrugged. "Doesn't matter; I'm gone in two days. Unless you wanted a one night deal."

"No..." she mumbled.

"Think of it this way- it probably wouldn't have worked anyway. We're just... saving time." He paused, contemplating more to say. Instead he just walked inside.

Of course she knew it probably wouldn't have worked. That wasn't the point. Yoshi just wanted to try, and feel a sliver of hope that it could become something meaningful. She wanted the rush of spending some time with another person in something deeper than friendship or work. Attempting any of this with Christopher already felt like a compromise.

Yoshi knew she was giving up a lot at a fleeting hope of the intimacy she needed. It was desperate, and felt like a short term remedy. She didn't even get that, throwing herself out there and getting rejected by mere circumstance. It was embarrassing. To be shot down like that made her feel hopeless. A relationship with Christopher never felt like a sure thing or even a likely thing, to the point where Yoshi didn't know why she was crying about it. But she was, badly, and her only thought was to get away before anyone saw her.

* * *

JP Shibayama was upfront with Jeremy from the very beginning. He was sticking with his team, eager to help them establish and maintain a quality of life at Isthmian almost as good as their current home's. He bought into Takuya's proposal enough and was hurt that no one in Command had told him about the river weakening. He relied on it for spare parts other important tools and didn't appreciate being kept out of in the loop. He spelled all this out for Jeremy soon after the concert. His assistant had a very different stance on the whole thing, but they worked amicably to make the split as smooth as possible.

They didn't see much of each other the next few days. A lot needed to be uninstalled and moved aboard the train, and most of the work fell on them. JP would work out a checklist from Zoe and divide the work evenly. They often wouldn't see each other again until they went to bed.

Thankfully, with Koji back, they both had the ability to do the job quickly. Beetlemon loaded a desk onto a car and held the door open for Ballistamon to drop off a second. Still in this form, he returned to the castle for another load and ran into Jeremy labeling drawers.

"How's it going?" Beetlemon asked.

Jeremy jumped back. "Whoa, who are you?"

"Wow, relax!" Beetlemon turned back into JP. "It's just me! I can haul a lot more this way. Plus I'm pretty sure that's how they expect to get enough electricity over there."

With a shrug, Jeremy said, "You'd think they would have had that worked out considering half the stuff you're taking needs it." He shook his head. "Good thing they have you around. But we'll hold the fort down in your absence!"

JP snickered. "Who's we?"

"With you gone, I figured Zoe could help with some of the lighter stuff."

Suddenly, JP's face turned white. He stared back at his assistant with grave concern. "Um... have you talked to Zoe about this?"

"She didn't want to talk about it. With Takuya around, can you blame her? I'm sure she wants to get this week over with and we'd go from there."

"Yeah, uh... could you excuse me for a second?"

JP ran inside, thankfully finding Zoe in the hall working out some details with Jeri. He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her out of her seat.

"What the hell, Zoe?!" he spat, dragging her back.

She fought at first, trying to pull her arm away, shouting, "JP, where you you... what are you doing?!" Finally, she ripped her arm away from him and stopped. She fought the urge to slap him. "This better be good!"

"You haven't told Jeremy?!" She opened her mouth to respond, but only slumped her shoulders. He grabbed her again. This time she couldn't fight him as he pulled her outside.

Jeremy stood up in confusion as the two approached. JP released her, folded his arms, and waited.

Narrowing his eyebrows, Jeremy stared at Zoe. By now, he was catching on. "Zoe? Do you need to tell me something?"

"I'm..." She struggled to get it out. "I'm going with them."

"What? Why? Don't tell me Takuya's forcing you."

"He's not forcing me!" she angrily exclaimed. Calmer, she explained, "He's... he's right. We need to do this."

"Who says?! How can you even listen to him after the way he treated you?"

Zoe turned away. "Don't... Jeremy, you don't understand."

Jeremy stared back silently for a moment, then said, "No. I guess I don't. So explain it to me."

"Well... I..." She found herself at a loss for words. "This is... I just feel like I'm supposed to go with him." She turned to JP. "You're with me, right?" JP nodded reluctantly.

"That's not good enough!" Jeremy insisted. "When we started hanging out you were miserable because of him! Now you've got us, and Kari, and..." He took her hands. "You were happy. Why are you going to throw all that away for that ass?"

Zoe ripped her hands away. "Don't call him that! He's doing something! He's not always nice about it but Takuya cares about me!"

"What, you think I don't?! I care about you more than anything else here! Let Tai and them worry about that other stuff. I'm worrying about you!"

"Well..." Her breathing grew heavier. "Well maybe you shouldn't! I never asked you to obsess over me! I'm leaving and you need to accept it!"

Jeremy clenched his teeth. "Accept it?! You two are abandoning me because Takuya wants to go exploring! I will not take this lying down!"

"Take it however you want," Zoe spat. "It won't change anything. This is how it is." She turned to JP and barked, "Come on."

She marched away angrily. JP didn't follow at first. He stopped and watched Jeremy, standing up straight as always, eyes focused as usual. His hand, balled into a fist, shook as he fought off tears.

"I'm... I'm sorry, buddy," JP said quietly as he chased after his teammate.

He had to jog to catch up to the fleeing Zoe. When he did, he walked alongside her, closely watching her face, steeled and unwavering. He didn't say anything. He just waited.

Finally, the moment came. She stopped, trembled, then burst into tears. Zoe lowered her head, falling into JP's arms. He held her close and let her cry.

"JP..." she sniffled. "Tell me I'm not making a huge mistake."

All he could do was bite his lip, pat her back, and clutch her tighter.

* * *

Ken Ichijouji found it odd having the room to himself again. Christopher's belongings and most of his furniture were out of the room, save for his bed. He never asked for a roommate, only accepted one for Davis's sake, and in three short months had not only gotten used to it, he found common ground with someone nobody expected to get along with. He wasn't upset over Christopher's departure; losing Davis or even Yolei would have been more emotional. But going back to solitude after sharing space felt empty.

Despite the turmoil in this final night of unity, he was ready to settle down with a book and an early night. The knock on the door startled him, but he answered it, wondering if Christopher had to surrender his key already. He was surprised to see Rika. He was even more surprised to see her in a dress. It was simple, violet, and the fit was imperfect enough to tell she borrowed it from Jeri. She still looked beautiful. He stepped aside without a word and let her enter.

Once he closed the door, he asked, "What's wrong?" A visit this late in a dress that pretty must have meant trouble. She sat on his bed and waited for him to join her.

"I thought a lot about this," she said, voice low. "And Renamon and I talked about it a lot." She hesitated, unable to deliver the point.

Ken figured it out. "Rika... are you going with them?" He was no less stunned.

"Look, it's not like I trust Takuya, but we have to be out there. That's where we belong. That's who we are." Her face steeled up. "And don't try to talk me out of it!"

He set a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it gently. "I... I understand." Her whole body seemed to soften at the first touch. "If you feel that strongly about it, the last thing I want to do is try to keep you here or tell you you're wrong."

"But..." She looked at him, pouting. "But, I'm leaving. Aren't you furious?"

He shook his head. "I'm disappointed, but you need to do what you think is right. Nobody should be able to force you."

Rika buried her head, her hands fidgeting in her lap. Ken checked her eyes for signs of tears. Instead, she shouted, "You're making this really hard! Fight back! Yell at me! Kick me out!"

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her until her outburst stopped. "I'm going to miss you too, Rika."

Now her hands found his back. With a chin on his shoulder, her head still shook. All traces of anger had vanished from her voice. "How can you take this? You hate fighting. How can you understand what I feel right now?"

"Rika, I like every side of you. When you're sarcastic. When you're angry or argumentative. And yes... I know you're a fighter." He pulled back, holding her shoulders, a light grin on his face. "I'm actually a little jealous of how close you and Marcus are."

"What?!" She snapped back, sneering suddenly. "We hate each other! Why would you be jealous of that?!" Ken only smiled and shook his head. "You think this is funny?! I'm leaving! It'll be forever before I see you again! And... and..."

"And you wanted to tell me in private..." He took her hands. "And wearing a very lovely dress."

"I..." She closed her eyes, head lowering. Again, she was calm. "I don't want this to end. I don't know if I'm ready yet."

"Nobody says it has to. We can find a way to keep in touch. We won't be apart forever."

"Ken?" Her head was still down. "Since I'm leaving tomorrow... would it be all right if..." Her eyes narrowed. "Look, I mean we're not going to see each other much after this, so... shouldn't we..."

It took him a moment, but he realized what she wanted to ask and leaned back. "You want to stay the night?" She grunted. "What about Christopher?"

"He um..." Rika fidgeted, refusing to make eye contact. "Well, Takato's gone, so Christopher agreed to crash with Marcus tonight. Those two idiots talked me into leaving, so..."

Ken's smile returned. "Marcus, huh?"

She shuddered. Ken stroked her chin, then pulled it up so he could look her in the eyes. "Rika... I'd love for you to stay. Thank you." He leaned in and kissed her. One gentle kiss before leaning back again.

Rika stared at him for a long time. He waited it out. Her breathing grew heavier and her hands shook more, until finally she threw her arms around his head and pulled him in close. She didn't need to say anything else and he was sure she didn't want to. It didn't matter- her kisses and her hands said it all. For as long as they would be apart, this one night would be theirs alone.

* * *

Davis Motomiya wasn't used to being this angry at everything. Half of everything in the castle was packed and loaded on a Trailmon. Almost half the team was leaving. He spent the week trying to convince everybody to stay. He didn't think he changed anyone's mind; everyone was set on trusting either Tai or Takuya. Now the train was about to depart, and all that was left to do was pick up the pieces.

Or, for the day at least, sulk upstairs with Tai and Kari. "You sure we couldn't have just kicked Takuya's ass?" he moaned.

"Davis, do you know how dangerous that would be?" Kari replied. "We all have Digimon. They all... turn into Digimon. Can you imagine what would happen if we settled it that way?"

"I get what you're saying but... wouldn't that be so awesome to watch?"

Kari frowned at him, but turned to the other officer in the room. "Are you okay, Tai?"

Tai didn't react. He kept staring blankly out the window.

Once sure she wouldn't get a response, Davis said, "Hey Tai? I know it sucks but don't you think you should be down there? You know, to see them off?"

"I'm sure Izzy and Thomas are there," said Kari. Tai didn't move.

"You know if Norstein were up here he'd bug you about showing leadership and saving face or some crap like that."

Tai only returned a sigh. Davis pretended to go back to work, but the daily routine never felt more insignificant. "So who's all going?" he asked Tai. "Did we ever get a final count?"

"Fifteen," Tai mumbled.

"Jeez, that's a lot. That's more than I thought."

"Thomas gave me the list." Tai shook his head. "I haven't looked at it yet."

"Can I?"

"It's in the folder on my desk."

Davis wheeled over and grabbed it. It had several pages of data on everyone leaving and their Digimon's abilities. The first page had the names. Most were expected like Takuya's team and half of the Fusion Fighters. Some like Ryo or Kazu were just disappointing. The last name on the sheet made him lose his breath.

"Tai, you need to see this!" Davis shouted, jumping to his feet.

"I'll look at it later."

"No, you need to get down there NOW."

Tai turned around, head low even after he saw the concern on Davis's face. "Why?"

"As lieutenant commander, I insist." Davis threw the folder at Tai. The papers inside flew everywhere, but the commander caught the first page and looked over it. His eyes bulged immediately.

"Izzy..." he read.

He dropped the sheet and ran to the elevator. Kari dropped her headphones and stood, shaking. "Izzy?" she whispered. "Why?"

"Go on," said Davis. "Get down there."

Impatient, Tai grabbed Kari's wrist and ran to the stairs. They sprinted down five flights to the bottom, never letting up until they got outside and into the underground station. A few onlookers like Thomas, Ken and Ewan watched Beetlemon load the last of the bags onto the Trailmon. At the front of the passenger car, Takuya stood in front of the door. He was their target.

"Izzy!" Tai shouted as he reached his fellow gogglehead. "What's going on? Where's Izzy?"

Takuya held up a hand. "We're leaving, like, right now. Surprised me too, but this is what he wants. Deal with it."

Kari grabbed Takuya's collar and spat, "I need to talk to him."

"Okay, okay, jeez..." Takuya pulled himself free and hopped aboard the car.

Tai and Kari backed away from the door. " _You_ need to talk to him?" Tai muttered.

Izzy stepped off the train slumping, his eyes closed. Kari ran up to him and threw her hands on his shoulders. "Why? What's going on? Did... something happen? Did Takuya..."

"This was his call," Takuya replied from inside, his eyes on Tentomon hovering next to him.

"Kari... I wish I could explain why I'm doing this," Izzy said, his eyes still closed. "I can't. It would only hurt you more." He took her hands and clutched them. "All I've been doing is hurting you. I know I'm doing it again. But if I stay here it'll only get worse. Please trust me."

"No!" She pulled his hands in closer. "What's wrong? Let me help."

He shook his head. "No. I don't deserve you. I'm... I don't think I'm a good person."

"What are you talking about, Izzy?" she cried. "You're wonderful. You're..." She trailed off, unable to fathom having to say more for him.

Izzy looked over her shoulder. Tai watched them carefully, eyes narrowed, nose upturned. He faced Kari for the first time. "I'd rather you continue believing that. I love you." He leaned in and kissed her one last time.

Takuya's mouth fell open. He saw Tai's jaw clenching. Shocked, he looked around for any sign of context. Tentomon only said, "It always comes out when he's saying goodbye."

Izzy pulled away. Kari was already crying. "I'm sorry about everything," he mumbled as he released her hands and boarded the Trailmon.

With a heavy sigh, Takuya grunted, "God, let's get going already." The doors closed on command.

"Kari!" Tai marched up to his sister, grabbing her shoulder. "What the hell's going on?"

"I don't know..." she cried.

"Were you two... like..." He couldn't even say it. "Tell me what just happened!"

She pulled herself away from him, glaring back at her brother as her tears fell. Her eyes narrowed. "I need to get out of here."

"Kari!" He reached out, but she ran to the exit before he could chase her.

The Trailmon blew a whistle and chugged to life, halting any thought of going after his sister. He clutched his head, frozen and helpless to watch the train as it started down the track. Tai knew he was losing so much already. Trailmon vanished into the dark tunnel, taking with it almost half of his team and forfeiting all the security he spent eight years building. He had already lost Sora and Matt. But losing Izzy, and maybe even Kari? Now Tai struggled to find anything left to build on.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 20: "Follow Me To Heaven"**  
As the officers attempt to continue operations, a rift opens between Tai and Kari. Izzy is shocked by Mikey's theories about the world's creators. Takato returns home, questioning why Koichi didn't leave with his brother.

" _Everyone here's a little bit broken. How could we not be after what we had to go through?"_

* * *

 **Author Notes  
** Midnight Machete references both Matt's proclivity for knife-themed band names in tri. and the name of Nene's army in Fusion. Since it doesn't actually have "knife" in it, safe bet Nene came up with it.

Continuing her habit of meta references, Nene dropping "Frontier" was carried over from a prior scene where I couldn't decide if using Takuya's series title was eerily appropriate or a laugh in a scene that didn't call for one. Nene blurs that line enough as it is, so she gets to deliver it now.

Double-fusion is the name of the combined digifuse of OmniShoutmon and ZekeGreymon. It's the closest point of reference Nene had while witnessing Omnimon, so she's using that. Actually, many of the kids use terminology more familiar to them, even when discussing other season mechanics.

One of the nice things about the history of Yoshi's love life is that she actually has a history in the canon. Judging by the similarities between Christopher and Neon, she may have a type too.

As much as we all kinda want to see it, there are far too many calm heads on both sides to have an all-out violent clash between them. Like Kari said, the consequences would be devastating and too many know that. At the same time, the rosters on both sides make it likely that either castle is prone to conflict of its own.

w9LmHISfm-8  
B00C7UOKH0


	21. 20- Follow Me To Heaven

**Neverworld**

 _Follow me to heaven and I'll meet you on the hell side of the clouds._  
 _There'll be farmers- they won't eat you, but they'll milk you sour._  
 _Follow me to heaven and I'll treat you to an underworld of doubt._  
 _If you follow me..._  
 _\- Sean Altman, "Follow Me To Heaven"_

 **Episode 20**

Thomas Norstein was having a bad enough day without Tai barking at him the whole way back upstairs. The Trailmon had left for Isthmian, Izzy was on it, and Kari had run off to cope with her broken heart. Thomas had a job to do. So did Tai, but he was more interested in preventing the Austrian from doing his.

"You knew Izzy was leaving! Why didn't you say something?" On the elevator, Tai's voice was harder to drown out.

"It was in the report," Thomas replied. "He only said he had to go. He didn't elaborate, nor was I in any position to interrogate him further."

"Did you try talking him out of it?"

"Of course. He insisted it was personal and for me to trust him. I am surprised he didn't talk to you or Kari though."

"Kari?" Tai narrowed his eyes as the elevator doors opened. Thomas stepped out first, but Tai didn't let up. "You knew about him and Kari?"

"Wait, what's going on?" Davis stood, surprised to see only two officers get off the elevator. "Who and Kari? And where is she?"

"No clue," Tai muttered, walking past a stunned Davis and falling into his chair. "Something was going on with her and Izzy." He stood up again and pointed to Thomas. "Something somebody apparently knew about!"

Thomas's response was fierce. "I am not going to discuss my colleague's personal life behind his back. In fact, I make it a point not to discuss my own personal life."

Davis raised an eyebrow. "Norstein, you have a personal life?"

"This is about my sister!" Tai shouted. "Don't you think I should know if Izzy and her were up to something?"

"Yeah, I need to know too!" Tai and Thomas stared at Davis. He shrugged. "What, I get left out of everything." They rolled their eyes. "So wait, he bailed on Kari? Why?"

Tai fumed. "I don't know. He bailed on all of us. And he didn't give us a reason." Huffing, he added, "Jeez, one minute you're friends with someone, the next he's running off after doing God knows what with your sister.

"C'mon, this is Izzy we're talking about. It's not like he's going to take advantage of her."

Thomas coughed and shifted his eyes, peering into his monitor. Davis narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"If you haven't noticed, we now have to run the same daily operations with fifteen fewer people." Thomas kept his voice firm. "We have several gaps to fill and we need to start filling them immediately. All of us should be working instead of pointlessly speculating about Izzy."

"It's not pointless," Tai muttered. "It's Kari."

"Right now, my biggest concern with Kari is nobody's listening to the radar. Her backup is on the train."

The elevator doors opened. Kari stepped out, head low. She sat at her station and put her headphones on without a word. The three boys looked at each other nervously. Thomas turned to her first. "Kari?" he asked, leaning forward. "Are you all right?"

She looked up, but not at him. He noticed her red eyes and the intensity of her stare, even if it was at a monitor. "Please let me work. Zoe's gone, so..." She gulped.

Tai marched up to her. "Kari, what's going on?" Her eyes closed and she leaned in more. Tai clutched the band of her headset and pulled it off. She turned around and sneered at him. He sneered right back.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said. "I just finished telling Gatomon. I don't need to repeat it to you. Just let me work."

"I just lost an officer... I just lost my best friend. You had something to do with it. I deserve to know what happened."

"I don't know what happened. I'm as confused as you are."

"I doubt that. Was he... was he..." Tai couldn't even say it. "Were you...?"

"Yes," she sniffed. "Yes we were. You're all caught up now." Kari sighed. "Feel better?"

"No! You think I like the idea of you two together?!"

Kari looked down. "So why are you surprised we hid it from you?"

She tried to turn back around. He grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back. "Kari, I can't just drop this. I need to know what this is about."

Shooting to her feet suddenly, Kari stared up at him for a second, then fled to the elevator. The doors didn't open right away, so instead she ran down the stairs. Tai was left standing there, his shoulders slumped. He was no closer to an answer and even angrier than before.

When the elevator did arrive, Davis strolled aboard. Tai and Thomas barely registered him until he stared back at them and pressed a button. It dropped to the second floor unimpeded and Davis stepped out just before Kari reached her room.

Her key was in the lock, but she saw him and stopped. "I already said I don't want to talk."

Davis approached her slowly. "What, you think I want the gory details? They can worry about Izzy. I'm worried about you." He put a hand on her shoulder. "If you don't want to talk... don't."

Kari closed her eyes, turning and squeezing him hard and crying on his shoulder. Davis sighed, wrapped his arms around her, and gently patted her head.

* * *

Henry Wong was dying to go home even more now that he had company. The nearly three weeks he and Takato had spent at Isthmian weren't uneventful: they had to put down two attacks, not that either posed any serious threat. But no matter how much Takato brought for recreation, there was only so much reading and gaming two friends could do. He wanted to go home, and now he was less inclined to leave it than usual. With this split, he didn't know the fate of the patrol team, but he hoped it either wouldn't be setting out for a long time or he wouldn't have to leave at all.

He thought having more company at Isthmian would help, but the train full of new occupants were too focused on getting situated to sit down and chat. He and Takato knew they probably should have helped (the train couldn't head back until everything was unloaded), but neither had the motivation. They still couldn't believe it was all happening.

Terriermon danced around his partner as they all watched the commotion against a wall in the courtyard. "You're telling me all these people actually signed up to move out here? That's nuts!"

"Well, not all of us volunteered."

"Hey, Falco!" Terriermon jumped and used his ears to glide over to Falcomon, his partner, and Yushima approaching them. "Suppose this place is a resort compared to what you're used to."

"Better out there than being pampered back home," Falcomon replied with a dismissive wave.

"I see these two haven't changed much," Yushima said, an arm around both the owl and Keenan's shoulders. "Thomas says they're better served out here for now. Guess they're back to being my problem. Just as well. Takuya will need all the help he can get for what he's planning."

"Yeah, Takuya's kinda crazy like that," said Takato. "So Keenan, is Primary Village looking any better?"

"No," Keenan answered, looking down. "Nothing happened. No activity. No hatching. No enemies. The black egg's gone too."

"Oh, lovely. Well, thanks for the update, I guess."

Falcomon set a wing on Keenan's shoulder. "Keenan, we'd better brief Thomas before things get too chaotic here. Terriermon, nice seeing you again," he said politely.

The three of them headed inside, but Takato and Henry stuck around to watch others arrive and take note of who left. Their stomachs churned when Guardromon hauled in a pair of beds. Kazu naturally followed him in. They were even more shocked to see Rika.

"Guys!" Takato shouted. "Seriously, you too?"

Kazu shrugged and approached them. Rika was more hesitant. "What the heck happened over there?" asked Henry.

Chuckling as he and Takato shared a secret handshake, Kazu replied, "Everything kinda went to hell back home. River's not working right. Command's covering it up. Takuya swoops in like a boss and wants to start a new adventure out here? Why the hell not?"

"Um... because Takuya running everything kinda scares me," Takato said. "You really turned your back on Tai like that?"

Rika scoffed. "Yeah, well this is where the action is. I'm not letting these guys get themselves killed without me. You know I can't loaf around the castle waiting for trouble."

Takato frowned but raised his hands to stop her. "Okay... okay..." He walked up to her. "Just take of yourself, okay?"

She sighed. "Fine, just don't hug-" He hugged her. She closed her eyes and hugged him back.

"But uh... what about Ken?" Henry asked as they separated.

"We um..." Rika pushed her fingers together. "We're fine. We talked about it... last night... and we promised to stick it out... and um..." She blushed. "Look, it's none of your business!"

"Rika!" From afar, Renamon called out. Either she needed help carrying boxes or she was pretending to struggle to pull her partner away from the conversation. Both Rika and Kazu ran to her without another word.

Henry eyed them carefully. "You don't think she actually...?"

Takato smirked. "Well, if she did... you know, Ken used to be with Yolei... and Yolei used to be with-"

"Shut up, Takato."

The goggle boy chuckled to himself, then turned to the entrance again. Takuya had been going in and out for an hour. This time he was going in, and followed by Ryo asking, "So where are the Digimon staying?"

Takuya stopped in his tracks. "Uh..." He turned around and grinned. "You know, Koji and I never thought about that one... 'cause, you know..." He found Takato and Henry and their partners and took a few steps towards them. "Hey Guilmon, where'd you stay while you were here?"

"Hmm? I stayed with Takato!" Guilmon replied.

Turning back to Ryo, Takuya said, "Well, if it's good enough for Guilmon!"

Ryo folded his arms and huffed, "Yeah... uh, that's not going to work for Cyberdramon." He heard a loud roar and rushed back out.

Takuya chuckled and smiled at Takato. "Almost done unpacking. We'll get you home in no time." He raised his eyebrows. "Though you're always welcome to stick around."

"We're leaving," Henry replied sharply.

"I know, I know..." Takuya sighed and walked up, patting Guilmon on the head. "Takato, it's been fun working with you. Don't let 'em boss you around too much." He extended a hand.

Takato frowned, but shook Takuya's hand and said, "Take care, buddy."

After releasing, Takuya turned around and started barking orders, a proud smile on his face. Takato hated what was going on, hated how everyone was being split apart, and wanted nothing more than to return home and see Jeri again. And yet he was awestruck at Takuya's confidence. Problematic as all this was, the castle was full of enthusiasm and its leader seemed to embrace the throne. Takato could never dream of betraying Tai and trusted in his course of action. But if Kazu was right about everything going to hell back home, this team full of energy was a sharp contrast. It left Takato wondering when he'd feel that same level of excitement again.

* * *

Sora Takenouchi still wasn't sure why she was in the command center's meeting room. She was still picking up the pieces from the departure, which only added to the misery of losing both Matt and Tai. There was no joy in cleaning previously covered patches of the floor or rearranging furniture to not remind everyone of what was missing. Now Yolei had pulled her and Joe upstairs- a combination that offered no clues to what it was for.

They waited for several minutes. Through the window, Sora saw Kari seated at her station. She and Tai were glaring at each other. Davis pushed him and Thomas away from her and through the door. Sora steeled herself; Tai had held true to his word and hadn't spoken to her since their breakup weeks ago. They didn't make eye contact until he sat down. He was steeled too.

Even so, he was nervous when he said, "So... this isn't how we wanted to tell you guys this but, uh..." He turned to Thomas for help, but didn't get any. "Well, we need to shuffle a bunch of things around, and we're still working some stuff out, but we lost a lot of guys on our active teams..."

"Wait..." Joe held out a hand. "Are you asking us to fight?" Sora's eyes widened, darting between Joe and Tai.

Tai coughed. "Well... I wouldn't call it _asking_ , exactly."

"Forget it, Tai," Sora spat. "I've been through enough. I don't need to throw Biyomon into danger now."

"Unfortunately, we don't have much of a choice," Thomas said. "We were hoping to take our time with this, but events forced our hand." Thomas slid a folder towards Yolei. "A small herd of DarkTyrannomon was corrupted and is storming around west of here. We need you to intercept them and put them down before they hurt anybody."

"Corrupted?" Sora gasped. "That's still going on?"

Thomas nodded. "It's gone down significantly since we were able to develop an immunization against it, but the patrol team can't hit everybody. Much as we like to claim otherwise, Digimon are comprised of data, which may naturally become corrupted."

"This is actually pretty routine for us," Yolei said, flipping through the folder. "It's sad, but we deal with one of these every other week."

"If not for the urgency, this is actually an ideal first mission for you."

Sora looked down. "I can't believe you expect us to just rush out and start killing Digimon again."

Yolei watched her and grimaced. "Do they really have to? What about Cody? I'm sure we can take care of them if Davis and Ken are with us. And once Takato gets back-"

With a sigh, Thomas interrupted: "We also have to replace most of the patrol team. We lost three members and may reassign Henry. So Takato may well be transferred." He frowned. "Cody requested to go on patrol... which we are granting."

Everybody fell silent for a moment. They appreciated the weight of somebody volunteering to leave the castle for weeks at a time to trek through rough environments and deal with often dangerous locals. Nobody content with their life at the castle would sign up for that.

Sora spoke next: "But I've got so much to do here. I can't do all this as well."

Tai nodded. "Suzie's back with hospitality full time. She'll lighten your load there."

"That doesn't make me feel better." It couldn't knowing why Suzie was rejoining it. "And what about Joe? Who's covering for him?"

"I am," said Thomas. "I'm more than capable of filling in if Joe is gone."

"Probably better," mumbled Joe.

"We might also have Ewan help out too," explained Tai. He paused, casting hard stares at both Joe and Sora. She wanted to hold firm, but her eyes wouldn't let her. She was too weary. Sick of fighting enemy Digimon, yes, but also sick of fighting her friends. Her eyes cheated to Joe; he was already close to conceding.

Suddenly, Tai's face softened. He blinked a few times and said, "Guys... I wanted more than anything to keep things the way they were. But we're really shorthanded right now. There's a lot of us downstairs without Digimon who can go fight. We need you to help right now. And I know you two can do it."

He looked at her again, his eyes pleading with her. Sora could only imagine what he was going through with all this. She could hide away in hospitality forever. Tai couldn't. It didn't help her at all, and only added more problems, but she looked down and said, "Okay. Let's go." She stood and walked out. Joe and Yolei nodded silently and followed her out.

Once they had left, Tai leaned back in his chair. "How many more friends can I lose today?"

"This was the best course of action," Thomas said. "Everyone will need to step up more."

Tai only shook his head. "What did you mean about reassigning Henry? First I heard of it."

"I'm going to recommend Henry for the open officer position."

"What?!" Tai almost fell over in his chair. "Are you nuts?! Henry's not exactly my biggest fan right now. You think we can work together? I'm surprised he didn't stay over there!"

"We're fortunate he didn't. But while he's certainly qualified for the job, I will admit there are political motives behind this." Thomas cracked a smile. "One thing that got us into trouble was the impression that your old team is making all the decisions for everybody. Promoting one of the tamers counters that. Secondly, as you said, Henry is still siding with us despite stranding him at Isthmian for three weeks. This would be a way to show our appreciation and maybe bridge the gap from our prior disagreements."

He stood and walked out of the room. Tai followed, but not before muttering under his breath, "Does that include the part where I slept with his girlfriend?"

Outside, he was happier to see TK chatting with Davis. Kari was back to burying herself in her workstation. Tai smiled and said, "TK! Welcome aboard!"

"Welcome aboard?" Thomas asked Tai.

Still grinning, Tai answered, "Kari needs a backup. How about TK?"

Thomas thought for a moment, then nodded. "Good call."

Except Kari slowly removed her headphones, swiveled around, and shot Tai a look of disgust, asking, "Why are you doing this to me?"

"Doing what?" Tai threw his hands up. "It's TK!"

"You just... assumed I'd be okay working with TK?"

"Um... yes?" Kari closed her eyes and shook her head.

TK leaned towards Davis and asked, "Did I miss something?"

"You missed everything," Davis replied. "...and we're not totally caught up either."

"Jeez..." Tai paced around, exasperated. "Who the hell are you? I don't understand this! All I know is I just sent Sora and Joe out to kill some corrupted Digimon, so the least you can do is show your best friend what you do here every day. Is that so much to ask?" By the end, he was almost yelling.

Kari's mouth hung open. With a gulp, she mumbled, "Okay," and turned back to her station. TK needed some urging forward from Davis and Thomas, but he took a seat next to her.

She closed her eyes for a long time, but turned to him, frowning. He flashed a bright smile and cheerfully said, "Hi!"

Kari blinked, her frown never budging. She turned to the monitor and said, "This screen shows us all of the signals we're receiving around the continent. Put on the headset and try to listen closely..."

* * *

Takuya Kanbara looked around at his new council, huddled in the small basement room that had evolved into the main Isthmian point of operations over the last couple months. The unadorned cement walls and lone computer terminal made it the polar opposite of the opulent sixth floor command center back home. The chairs were simple and uncomfortable. It was the ideal war room.

Still, it may have been a little crowded, with Takuya, Koji, Mikey, Izzy and Yushima all squeezed in. The latter two felt obligatory to Takuya. Yushima was there out of a sense of respect: he was older, wiser, and it felt like his castle. If anyone asked, Takuya would say he was in charge. He was leery of including Izzy, especially knowing his reasons for joining had nothing to do with his belief in the cause. But he was the best source of information they had and Koji insisted on including him.

Even so, Izzy clung to the wall, head down as the others discussed plans for organization and overall strategy. Takuya had little interest in the structure of their operation. All he knew was he wanted to avoid the old hierarchy. Everybody was expecting him to seize control as the new Tai. He wasn't about that. He wanted to make things happen. He let Koji outline a system and present it to the others. Takuya was barely listening. As long as he could explore the new land with no barriers, he was content.

Once Koji reached the good part, which gave Takuya unrestricted freedom outside the castle to act as he saw fit, Yushima coughed and stood up. "Of course you're all free to do as you choose. Far be it for me to care how you organize. But don't you think there should be some sort of focus? A mission to pursue?"

"We already told you, we want to check out the new continent," said Takuya.

"Define explore. Mapping out the land? Finding communities? Dangerous spots?" Yushima grinned. "Do you cover every surrounding inch or fly as far as you can to see what's out there? You can explore with both a telescope and a microscope, you know." Takuya rolled his eyes.

Mikey stood up. "What you need to look for are the Digimon that created this world. Like Algomon."

"Right, you mentioned that before," Takuya said. "Not like they're wearing name tags though."

"Well, that cave Algomon was in was super weird, right? Look for places like that."

Takuya sighed. "Maybe Marcus will help us figure out what to look for. What are we supposed to do once we find these guys?"

Mikey huffed loudly. "Hate to say it but I think they're the enemies we've been looking for."

"What?!" Izzy shot up. "Are you out of your mind?" He paced around as much as the cramped space would allow. "Don't you remember what Ceresmon said? If destroying Algomon led to the problems with Primary Village and the river, why would we want to go out and look for more of them to kill?"

"Destroying the creators destroys the world." Mikey grinned widely. "What if that's what needs to happen?"

Everybody leaned back in their chairs, uneasy at the suggestion. Mikey didn't care; he tapped his goggles and jumped to his feet. "We all came in here thinking we need to save this world, right? What if..." He stumbled, struggling to force the words out. "...what if it's us who need to be saved from the world?"

He saw both Takuya and Yushima recoil. Undaunted, Mikey continued, "Think about it! All of us coming in from other worlds? Getting stuck here? What if this place is the trap? Is it even real? Is there even a real world tied to it?"

" _Human_ world," Izzy hissed. "And no, probably not. If there is, it combines data from all of our worlds just like this does. But that doesn't mean-"

"This world shouldn't exist," Mikey declared. "It's... it's like digiquartz. It hit us first, but it spread and all of you got pulled in. We had to beat Quartzmon... we had to beat the creator of that world in order for you guys to go home." His long grin somehow widened. "I bet it's the same here."

Everybody stared back at him in stunned silence. Mikey looked all of them in the face. Takuya was deep in thought. Koji narrowed an eye, leery. Yushima scratched his chin.

Izzy glared, still on his feet. "This is absurd." Mikey's smile fell, but only slightly. "Don't you think we speculated about all of this? Yes, everything you said comparing this world to digiquartz is a possibility. Thomas and I have spent hours discussing it. But we can't know more until we see who shows up here next, if anybody. We have to wait it out."

He shook his head rapidly. "But to take a guess on that _and_ these creators? You want to actively hunt them? Even though you don't know how strong they all are? Even if you don't know how many there are? Even if you don't know they're all malevolent like Algomon!" Mikey looked away, but Izzy didn't let up. "And look at what happened after we killed him! What happens after the second? The third? If the world destabilizes after each one, will we even survive to defeat them all?"

Izzy sat down again, huffing, "This is why Tai didn't want you knowing about them."

"C'mon, Takuya..." Mikey dropped to a knee, pleading with his fellow leader. "I have a feeling about this. This is what we need to do. It's digiquartz all over again. We need to beat Quartzmon again." He put a hand on Takuya's arm. "I need your help... again. You were there for me last time."

Takuya's eyes darted between Mikey and Izzy, both anxiously waiting a decision. This was the part of the job Takuya knew he'd hate. He was deciding between logic and discretion versus impulse and action. Just as importantly, he was choosing between old and new.

He stood, forcing Mikey back to his feet. "I know you guys think I want to do Tai's job now that we're over here," Takuya said. "Not a chance. That's not how we're running things anyway, and I want to be out there doing the exploring, not babysitting the castle. So we need a leader who knows what he's doing and knows what to aim for."

With one last smirk at Izzy, Takuya put a hand on Mikey's shoulder and declared, "I think we found our new commander." His smile grew. "No... wait... how about general?"

* * *

Takato Matsuki expected more out of his return home. There was no fanfare, no exciting reunion with friends, and no show of gratitude from Command. Part of it was because the train pulled into the station in the middle of the night. Davis was the only one there to greet Takato and Henry, but he had fallen asleep. Rather than wake him, Veemon helped them and their Digimon unpack the train, even if they left most of the cargo at the station. Then Takato slept in and woke up too late to catch Jeri before she had to start working. He got a quick kiss while she was between projects, but anything more intimate would have to wait.

His first interaction wasn't a good one. It started with a debriefing with command, where he summarized his stay at Isthmian and the (uninteresting) battles he had. The officers tried to explain what had happened, but it was such a change that no words could make it any less surreal.

Still, the real bombshell was learning that he may be conscripted for patrol duty to replace Marcus, Rika and Kazu. They stressed it wasn't final and that the decision would be made based on necessity. Takato nodded along and said he'd be willing to do whatever they needed. He could tell they appreciated his allegiance. But after being stuck away from the castle for three weeks, the last thing he wanted was to leave again. He was more than happy to do his job and respond to problems, but all he wanted was to spend his days with his friends and his nights with Jeri.

This, apparently, was becoming too much to expect. He had all the respect in the world for Tai and the officers, but did they think of him as someone with his own opinions and feelings or somebody that would reliably say yes to whatever they asked of him?

The castle felt emptier and quieter than he had ever remembered. Furniture was gone, there were fewer people in the common areas, and nobody was having a loud conversation. The only discussion happening anywhere was around one of the remaining tables in the hall. He wasn't close to Ewan or Angie, but felt more comfortable joining them with Koichi there.

"Hey guys." Takato looked around the hall. "I, uh... see things kinda changed around here."

"Oh... hi, Takato," mumbled Koichi. He didn't look up when Takato sat. "When did you get home?"

"Last night. Still trying to take all this in." He squinted at Angie, wearing badly stained overalls and a bandanna over her hair. She looked like a mess. "Wow, what have the Digimon been putting you and Kenta through?"

She looked at her clothes, nose wrinkling. "Oh, no, this is my new side job. I gotta go fix a clog in one of the showers in Leo. Fun, huh?"

Takato chuckled. "And here I thought Tai was asking a lot from me."

"It's not Tai. I'm helping Jeremy." Angie took a long, sad sigh. "Poor kid lost his best friend and his girl. Someone's gotta be there for him."

"I offered to have Damemon hang out with him," Ewan said. "...he turned me down for some reason."

"Well, wish me luck!" Angie exaggerated a salute and marched off. As the remaining trio watched her leave, they saw TK enter the hall. Ewan smiled and flagged him down.

"TK!" Takato grew a smile as the digidestined joined them, grinning. "Saw you upstairs. Guess you're taking over for Zoe, then?"

TK shrugged, but his smile remained. "I guess. Interesting stuff they do up there."

Takato leaned in, eyes widening eagerly. "Plus you get to hang out with Kari all day!"

"Yeah, uh..." TK frowned, scratching his neck. "I don't know. She was a mess yesterday. Actually, she's been acting weird since I got back. I think she was avoiding me. What's up with that?"

"Don't know," Ewan answered. "She's always seemed a little off to me."

"Guess that's why I'm with you guys then." TK's grin returned. "The Abandoned Brothers Brigade!"

"I never agreed to that name," muttered Ewan.

Takato looked around the table, suddenly nervous. "Oh... am I interrupting something?"

TK waved him down. "Nah, just something Ewan and I were joking about since Matt and Nene left. But we had to add Koichi to the club!"

Chuckling, Takato eyed Koichi. "Light's acting weird, so you're giving darkness a try, huh?"

"I, uh..." Koichi coughed. "I don't like joking about that."

"Don't worry about it," Ewan said, face straightening. "I've been there."

"You really don't have to include me if you don't want to."

"It's fine." Ewan lowered his head. "Hard enough to stay occupied around here. This place is so..." He huffed. "Has to be really bad for you. Your whole team left you."

"Yeah, what's up with that?" Takato asked. "I would have figured you'd have gone with Koji and Takuya. Why would you stay here?"

Koichi pushed his seat out and stood abruptly. "I should go." He turned around and tried to dash away.

Takato nodded at TK and Ewan and chased after him. "Koichi, wait! I want to know what's going on! Why wouldn't you follow them over there? It's just... really weird to me."

Koichi stopped, his back still to Takato. "Why is that weird? I'm not my brother. Maybe I just like it better here."

"Well, okay. I just... you know, figured you could talk about it with someone. I'm curious."

Eyes to the ground, Koichi gritted his teeth. His hand curled into a fist. He exhaled once. "Takato?" he said, his voice suddenly raspy. "Do you really want to know?"

"Well yeah! I mean... we're friends."

Head jolting up, Koichi mouthed "friends" to himself. He sprinted away, far too fast for Takato to think about chasing him, or the subject, any more.

* * *

Kari Kamiya had no way to process what had happened. She had enough perspective to know this was far from the biggest disaster in her life. But with everything else, there was always someone to talk to to help share the pain. Now she was alone. She could cry in Davis's shoulder all she wanted and spill every last detail of her affair to Gatomon. Neither could understand why she had been with Izzy. Neither could understand how lost she felt when he suddenly abandoned her. And now having to work with TK again? His alleged feelings for her and the disaster that supposedly ensued started this whole mess. She didn't want to deal with him yet. Tai forcing the issue, on top of his insistence on answers she didn't have, made it all that much worse.

She just wanted to eat her lunch alone, trying to figure out why Izzy would run from her. She wouldn't even get that as Mimi dropped a tray next to her and fell into a seat. "I agree. It's that kind of week."

Kari looked up, her weary eyes finding Mimi's. The older digidestined didn't look much better. "Hope you don't mind. Sora and Yolei are on a mission again." Mimi looked around the room, frowning. "Pretty quiet around here."

"I'm not really in a talking mood right now. I'm sorry," Kari said, head lowering again.

"I bet. It has to be terrible for you all upstairs." Mimi sighed. "I hate this. I hate all of this. I hate Matt. I hate Nene. I want to wring Takuya's neck. It's just awful."

Keeping her word, Kari didn't reply.

"I can't believe how many left," Mimi continued, her voice lowering. "I kind of expected Tommy to go, but Rika? Ryo? And what happened with Izzy? That hurt the most."

"I have no idea," Kari mumbled. "I have absolutely no idea." Tears started to form.

"Really? I can't believe he wouldn't say anything to you or Tai. You're all so tight up there. You're the officers."

"More than that even. We were, um..." Kari's head turned up, mouth twitching. "We were sort of... together. "

Mimi's mouth fell open. Her first instinct was to squeal at the thought of the excitement and scandal of two of her digidestined in a secret relationship. But the implications caught up to her quickly. What it meant for Kari to hide such a thing from Tai. How Tai must have reacted to it. And what did it mean if he still left?

Suddenly, a new thought struck her and she gasped. It rattled her entire core, weighing heavy and settling into the pit of her stomach. She was almost teary as she slowly said, "Oh... oh... Kari, I'm sorry. I had no idea."

"Nobody did." Kari shook her head, oblivious. "Everything was going fine, and suddenly-"

"Can you forgive me?" Suddenly, Kari was hushed. Mimi continued to plead, "He never said anything. It just... happened. We were both... and it felt right in the moment."

Kari narrowed an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"That massage last week... it, um... turned into something more than that."

Mimi was hoping Kari would get it. She didn't. "You know... we did... adult stuff." Mimi flashed a smile to drive the point home.

But no, the only change to Kari's expression was her mouth opening slightly. Finally, Mimi gave up and declared, "Izzy and I had sex." She huffed. "Seriously, girl?"

Kari's leaned back slightly. "You did... f-for real?" she stuttered.

With a sad nod, Mimi replied, "I suggested it, but... he certainly didn't say no. And he definitely wanted to." She fought off a grin.

Head shaking slowly, Kari's eyes lowered. "He did, huh?"

"I can assume you two never..." Mimi stopped. She didn't need any more confirmation.

"That's why he left..." Kari decided, tears streaming once again. "He ran away rather than..."

Mimi extended a hand. "Kari, I swear if I knew about this I never..." Kari abandoned her food, stood and ran before Mimi could finish. Mimi looked around; no other friendly faces were in sight. She was alone, and now she was the one ready to cry.

* * *

Joe Kido was surprised and a little dismayed at how quickly he and Gomamon re-acclimated to fighting. The previous day's assignment was rough. Gomamon and Biyomon weren't as sharp as they once were, their partners troubled at seeing corrupted Digimon with no hope for salvation. It was sloppy, with hesitation and error leading to a few close shaves. But they were the digidestined, and this sort of thing was never going to present a serious challenge. The combined might of Ikkakumon, Birdramon and Aquilamon put down the threatening herd before it harmed anybody. They were glad for it to be over.

It wasn't.

The sequel the next day was even more draining. The corruption hadn't spread to some of the herd at first, which meant a scheduled visit to either immunize them quickly or put them down if they did turn. Unfortunately, it proved to be the latter and they had to fight all over again. Ikkakumon used his Harpoon Torpedo attack to keep the two remaining DarkTyrannomon at a distance while Birdramon rained fire down on them. It looked like a routine they had perfected years ago.

"They're way too good at this," Sora muttered. She and Joe watched from a safe distance while Yolei directed the action from above. Sora scratched her arm, sitting on the grass while her partner continued to subdue the sick beasts.

"Better this than them being in trouble," Joe replied. "Just a shame it gets to this point. Healing's a lot more rewarding."

"Can I help them?" said the fourth Digimon present. Patamon hovered close to Joe as instructed, but looked onto the battlefield with curiosity.

"No, I don't want you any closer." Joe leaned in, trying to get a close look at Patamon's fur. Despite the little guy being too restless and unsteady to hover in place, Joe was satisfied by what he saw.

"What are you looking for anyway?" Sora asked. "I still can't believe TK let him take you."

"He's had his shots, so there's no risk of catching anything. But I want to see if he reacts to corruption Digimon at all."

"Why would he?"

Joe wiped the grass next to Sora as much as he could, then sat with her. "The scanners picked up some unknown data in him. We can't figure out what it is." Sora inhaled through her nose, an uneasy look on her face. "Izzy had a look a couple weeks ago, but he was stumped."

"He's not corrupted, is he?" She watched Patamon scratch his ear-wings.

"No. Otherwise he would have digivolved differently, like he did when Marcus found him. It's more like some sort of mutation. It's too early to tell if it's good or bad." Joe moaned. "But knowing our luck..."

"Have you told TK?"

"Not yet, but I guess I have to. I was hoping to get something out of watching him."

Sora wrapped her arms around herself, looking up at Birdramon delivering a finishing blow on one of the DarkTyrannomon. "It never ends..."

"It did though! It used to seem so calm around here." Joe shook his head. "I mean sure Marcus and Takuya were always dealing with stuff but it's not like it ever got close to really threatening us." He gestured at the remaining DarkTyrannomon. "This is bad but... compared to what we used to go through?"

"We're all starting to hate each other again," Sora said. "Half of us just up and left. I'm sure we would have done the same thing before if we thought we'd all survive it." Joe returned a sad nod. "I'm not sure we'll survive this."

Joe chuckled. "If you're looking for someone to say we'll be fine, you're talking to the wrong guy. I think we're shooting ourselves in the foot."

"I don't know what I'm looking for anymore."

"You know, I don't think we realized how good we had it before. Everything was mostly calm, we all put up with each other." He glanced at Patamon. "Nobody was dying. It was everything we could have asked for."

Sora shuddered. "We missed it because we were still waiting for Matt and TK. We weren't together. It was like we were on hold all those years. And now..." She clenched her teeth.

"We just have to keep doing this, don't we?" Joe pushed up his glasses. "Keep fighting until we get back to the good times... or Takuya messes up and we all end up dead."

Ikkakumon seized the moment and charged forward, eliminating the last DarkTyrannomon and completing the mission. Sora leaned over, her head falling against Joe's shoulder as they watched their Digimon return in muted triumph. Joe glanced at her and grimaced, but did not disturb her.

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa knew she was in danger of not having dinner ready anywhere resembling on time. In the morning, she thought busting some nice steak out of the freezer would help refresh some spirits. But as it sat thawing on the counter she found herself unable to focus on food and barely able to concentrate on even grilling the vegetables. Time was running out, she had so much left to do, and her surprise feast was going to be a mess.

How was it that sharing happy moments with close friends continued to lead to disaster? Showing Matt the music room and presenting him his bass led to his proper introduction to Nene and betraying the entire team. Indulging in some much-needed intimacy with Izzy chased him away from the first relationship he or Kari had dared initiate. Neither of these were in any way her fault. Matt and Izzy made conscious decisions. But her acts of love turned into them hurting her friends and running away from the consequences. Now, on top of this disastrous division destroying morale, she had to fight off this strange feeling of cynicism challenging her never to do anything nice again.

This terrible feeling was so foul the smell of smoke seemed appropriate. By the time she realized it was from the vegetables, it was too late to salvage them. Mimi switched off the burner and glared at the damage. She was already way behind schedule; there was no hope of preparing them again and no assistant to help make up ground. In frustration, she slammed the pan handle, accidentally flipping it and sending it, and its contents, clanging against the floor. Mimi froze. Was it even worth cleaning up?

While she stood still, the door opened. She didn't react until she heard Ewan shout, "Everything okay in here?! I heard something crash." Mimi looked up at him, but still couldn't move. She tried to force a smile and act like everything was under control, but it wasn't. She couldn't pretend.

He frowned. "Do you need help?" She only blinked in response. Ewan hunted down a broom and dustpan and started cleaning her mess. He was halfway through before she bent down to take the pan while he swept the burnt food into it.

Ewan's offer of assistance didn't stop there. He picked up a pan and started on a new round of vegetables while Mimi started the steak. She was still overwhelmed, still barely functioning, but this was progress. As she watched the meat cook, she mumbled, "Why are you helping me?"

"You needed help," he replied, concentrating more on the food. "Seemed like the nice thing to do. Anyone here would jump in if they could."

"It hasn't felt that way lately. Your friends sure aren't helping."

Ewan shook his head. "Nene and Mikey are good people. They just... sometimes we hurt each other and don't realize it." He paused, staring down at the pan. "It's inevitable. I tried to find a world where that doesn't happen... I've done more hurting than anybody here."

Mimi raised an eyebrow, daring herself to take her eyes off the steaks long enough to look at him. "You might want to talk to Ken about that."

"I'm not mentally ready to talk to Ken about that." His voiced was suddenly hushed.

A faint smile crept onto Mimi's face. "There it is... I knew there was something. You can't hide it completely."

"Hide what?" Ewan snapped back. "Everyone knows what I did."

"And you still struggle with it." Mimi stared back at him. "Don't think I haven't noticed. You don't feel like you belong here, do you?"

He looked away. "You... don't understand."

She leaned in, trying to catch sight of his face. "I want to." Ewan turned to her and saw a reassuring smile. "That's why you intrigue me so much. You have the ability to do anything and a sister who will do anything for you. But you're not happy and I want to know more."

Mimi returned to her steaks, shaking her head. "That's why it hurt so much when you thought I was just a fangirl. Like you thought I only saw you as a pretty face with a bunch of talents."

Ewan nodded slowly. "It's not just that." He glanced at her quickly. "Maybe I also thought you were just a pretty face with a bunch of talents." After poking at his pan, he said, "But you're more than that too, aren't you? You have problems and worries and things you wish you could forget about." He bit his lip. "I've had dozens of girls say they like me. And I would always push them away because I knew they wouldn't like the real me."

"I'm fascinated by the real you." Mimi chuckled quietly. "Besides, everyone here's a little bit broken. How could we not be after what we had to go through?"

He chuckled back. "I like you better knowing you're a little bit broken."

She blushed a little, but continued grilling without response.

As the meal started to come together, their components uniting into a dinner that was now bound to be only a few minutes late, Ewan said, "Hey... I'm supposed to be helping Yolei with response team stuff, but when I'm not busy with that, did you want me to help out here?"

Mimi sighed, struggling to hide her smile. "Yes... I'd like that very much."

Ewan didn't hide his. "So would I."

* * *

Zoe Orimoto felt a shiver in spite of the roaring fire in front of her. Like everyone else, she arrived at her new home excited about the possibilities and eager for a fresh start. Yes, she turned her back on Kari despite their much-needed friendship. Yes, she ruined a healthy and promising relationship with Jeremy. The entire pitch around going to Isthmian was about taking control of life and having the freedom to venture forward. She was going to do what she wanted no matter who thought it was a bad idea. No matter how happy she realized she had become.

It didn't matter now. She made her decision and now she had to hope it was a good one. As everybody huddled around the celebratory bonfire, talking about the exciting challenges ahead of them the next day, she tried to focus on her contribution to the effort. Zoe would have the same job managing communications between the different field teams and handling whatever dispatches came from the other castle. As the Isthmian equivalent of Kari, she thought of it as a promotion until Koji dispensed with the officers concept for something less formal. Now everybody was more or less equal except for Takuya, who ran all the operations outside the castle, and Mikey, who was in charge inside it.

Zoe struggled with Mikey's appointment. She was here because she had an unshakable faith in Takuya and her original team (it was jarring how quickly they excluded Koichi). For years, she had wanted to see what Takuya could do at the helm in place of Tai. Isthmian was supposed to be that experiment.

She had no such curiosity about Mikey. After the Angie incident, it seemed like everybody was leery of him. Jeremy still viewed him more as a rival than a friend. From his testimony, Mikey was incredibly capable and unwilling to tolerate suffering, but he alternated between tunnel vision and a state of constant distraction. The same day they arrived at Isthmian, he pressed her about what she was capable of with her spirits. He wasn't happy when she told him how uncomfortable she was using them. Zoe wasn't sure if he'd take no for an answer if he wanted Kazemon to do something. She felt another shiver.

Suddenly, a jacket found its way around her shoulders. "Seriously? You're cold?" Takuya said, sitting next to her. He wrapped an arm around her back, pulling her in. Zoe gasped, but only for a moment. She didn't think she was actually cold, but the gesture, and his proximity, instantly made her feel more comfortable.

"No, I..." She sighed. "Why did you pick Mikey? I thought you were going to lead here."

"Because, I'm not going to be around here all the time. We're starting our first sweep of the new continent tomorrow. Who knows what that'll lead to. We might catch wind of something and be gone for weeks."

"You idiot, you're going to run out of food."

"Thank God for digibytes," Takuya chuckled.

"But still, Mikey? Why don't you just have Koji or Commander-General Yushima run things while you're gone?

"C'mon, Koji? He's all ideas and action. He doesn't people. And yeah, Yushima's a good guy to have around. He's been through everything. But don't you think everyone here would rather listen to someone our age? Especially when things get crazy?"

"Are things going to get crazy here?"

"Wouldn't bet against it. But with Mikey's team guarding the place, I know we'll be fine."

Zoe pulled her legs in close, wrapping her arms around her knees. "That's not what I'm worried about." She stared at the fire. "Look at the five of us. We have our differences sometimes but we're all pretty inseparable after what we went through in our world."

Takuya grinned, but asked, "Yeah?"

"I don't feel that with Mikey's team. He was horrible to Angie. Nene's been keeping her distance from him. Ewan stayed home. And Jeremy..." She hushed up. Talking about Jeremy in front of Takuya felt wrong. Not that she knew whom she was wronging. "...it just raises questions, you know?"

"They can't all be us," Takuya replied with a smug smile, squeezing her back. "Look, you gotta give him a chance. He's trying to help, just like everybody. And he's got ideas we need to try out. And I'm sure Koji will yell at him if he does something stupid. I just... need you on board."

She turned to him. "I just..." There was that smile. He was so confident about everything happening that all of her protests fell away. Of course things were fine. Of course Mikey in charge wouldn't be that bad. After all, Takuya had chosen him. Zoe wanted to not have to worry about it. The only way she could was to put blind faith in her leader. "I just... need you."

Smile still on, Takuya leaned forward, pulling her in for a kiss. She was all too happy to receive it, and even rushed in for a second when it ended too soon. There was a chance everybody was watching them. She didn't care. Kissing him made the doubts go away.

When she pulled back to catch her breath, Takuya turned to spot any onlookers, before leaning in to steal one more. Lips still close together, he whispered, "I am heading out tomorrow. You maybe want to keep me company tonight?"

"Takuya..." she whispered back. She shouldn't have been so surprised; it used to be a regular pastime between them. But two months of being with Jeremy, and honoring her promise with JP, made it a shocking proposition.

"...okay," she answered, looking around the courtyard before standing up with him, taking his hand, and quietly slipping away from the group. If kissing him removed her doubts about everything, she could only imagine how calm the rest of the night would make her. For now, that was enough.

* * *

Tai Kamiya wrapped up another exasperating day the way he usually did- heading out with Agumon for a nightly walk. In this case, it turned into a jog, then an angry sprint. The day was more of the same- another corruption for the makeshift response team to put down, asking too much out of loyal allies like Takato, and strained conversations with Kari that showed no signs of relaxing. He didn't know what he wanted to say to Agumon, so he ran. Agumon kept up, figuring it was some sort of training exercise. Tai kept running. He didn't want to stop. If he had his way, he and his partner would have run forever, with no destination in mind.

But of course he came back. At some point he felt the weight of his duties, stopped, and walked back in silence. He thought he had been running for hours. The walk home barely took any time at all.

He left Agumon and settled in for a bath. Inside, he was alone. The more he sat there soaking, the more he didn't want to be. Tai didn't have anything to say to Agumon. His partner knew him too well, and could already sniff out his frustration and discontent. Agumon didn't need words to be reassuring. He could suggest it with an embrace or even a slight grimace on his normally eager face. Tai needed more. He needed to talk to somebody, to anybody who could make him think he wasn't steering everyone off course. Nobody arrived.

Before retiring for the night, Tai did one last lap through the castle. He expected things to die down quickly. The way things were going, he figured nobody would have been in the mood for late night frivolity. He couldn't have been more wrong.

At one table, Jeremy tried to teach Angie and Kenta the rules to some complicated board game Tai had never seen before. She looked baffled by the whole thing, but nodded along, asking follow up questions and engaging a friend who had been hurt so badly by those closest to him.

Mimi, TK and Ewan shared a couch, watching their three Digimon partners play around. She had been left as the sole cook for the whole castle while the two boys had their older siblings run off on them. All three had once watched their partners die. The way they were laughing, Tai couldn't tell if any of them cared.

Henry and Suzie played ping pong at the table in the corner while Terriermon pretended to officiate. They were feisty and competitive, but friendly and quick to acknowledge good shots. Suzie's partner wasn't coming back at all, but she had gotten past her grief and was already embracing her next chapter in life. Tai couldn't remember the last time he saw her and Henry this tight. They were getting through the hard times together. This was how a brother and a sister were supposed to act.

Sora was the only one in the room sitting alone, staring blankly out the window, surely lost in her thoughts. Tai knew so much of her pain was his fault. Matt had removed himself, erasing all the traces of his rejection and her wasted years. Surely she had accepted that, at least for now, he preferred to be somewhere else, with someone else.

There was no such closure between her and Tai. As much as he tried to avoid her, he couldn't run to another castle the way Matt did. They still saw each other, occasionally had to talk to each other, and now he even had to order her around like a soldier. What was the point of abandoning her? He was supposed to be in love with her. Who was he trying to impress, leaving her alone when she clearly needed a companion?

Maybe this was the time to mend things. Maybe things already were getting better. Sora could have made a stronger protest about fighting. He had softened his tone and tried to be more sympathetic and she responded in kind. Did that mean things could get better again? He just needed to be with someone, no matter what that entailed. Surely she needed the same thing. And honestly, if that led to something more, he really could have used that too.

He took a deep breath and took several steps towards her, but stopped when he saw Joe emerge from the library stacks, joining Sora on the sofa. Tai couldn't hear what they were saying, but they were talking. Their heads nodded, shook and moved around as their conversation livened. They weren't frowning; Tai could see that much. They were just talking like friends. Enjoying each other's company. Not being alone.

Tai would never find out what it was Joe said, but it struck hard and Sora starting laughing. She wasn't a loud laugher, but it was more than the polite chuckle she normally let out. Her smile was bright and honest, and she set a hand on Joe's shoulder as the two reveled in whatever. The smile outlasted the laugh. There was no hint of sadness. She was good. Or at least good enough that she didn't need Tai to be happy tonight.

He watched her beautiful smile for a while longer, wondering why he had to take it from her. He wondered why he couldn't have been the one to return it. Or if anybody could find his. Everybody in the room was surviving, relying on their friends and loved ones to scratch out some light in the haze they were all in. Nothing was there for Tai. Nobody was there. His friends and loved ones were deserting him. He had nowhere to go but back to his room, alone. He didn't want anyone to see him breaking down, so he had to run.

* * *

Koichi Kimura wasn't sure what he was doing. The wave of reassignments and replacements hadn't gotten to him yet, and he wasn't sure if it ever would. He didn't have a spirit or partner Digimon, he couldn't cook, he wasn't particularly handy, and he didn't have the sort of leadership qualities Command would be looking for in an officer. In a castle where everybody was being asked to step up and contribute more, he still felt like spare weight.

He didn't care as much anymore. While he wanted to contribute as much as he could, the lack of time commitment needed for his position gave him freedom. He could do anything he wanted. It took arguments with his brother to realize how good that felt. Koichi didn't have a superior to order him around or a team to pledge loyalty to or even a partner Digimon to bond with. He was as unchained as anybody, and found his usual social fears and hesitations fading away.

At breakfast, of the eight castle residents eating in the hall, only a couple were actually paying attention to Jeri delivering morning announcements on the stage. It wasn't anything terribly important, mostly schedule changes warranted by all the departures. Koichi hung on every word, staring up at her majesty, killing it at her job despite all the chaos. He was amazed she could handle such an important role, and admired her so much for succeeding at it. Of course he wanted to express it.

This time, he was going to.

He popped out of his seat as Jeri stepped off the stage, smiling as he approached her. She grinned back, but nodded politely. They were in public; whatever it was he had to say, she was going to keep the conversation professional. She barely had time to gasp when Koichi wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her in for a kiss.

Koichi sensed her panic, but it subsided amid the rush of passion flowing through them. She closed her eyes and enjoyed it for a few seconds, before pulling away. Jeri beat back her grin to say, "Koichi, what are you doing?"

A can of juice crashed to the floor, its contents pouring onto Takato's shoes.

He didn't notice. "Wha... what's going on?"

Jeri's mouth fell open in horror as her whole body shook. She took a step backwards. "T... T... T..." she couldn't even say his name.

"Why were you two..." Takato couldn't say the deed.

She gasped, head darting to Koichi. The twin was composed, standing straight, staring right at Takato with no emotion on his face. Before approaching Jeri, he had checked the hallway. He knew Takato was approaching. He knew Takato would see it. That was the point.

"Koichi?" she pleaded.

He took her hand, keeping his eyes on the tamer. "You asked me why I chose to stay here." Koichi clutched Jeri's hand tighter. "So I'm telling you."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 21: "Running From Lions"**  
Takato's response to Koichi's shocking announcement has an impact on both castles. Tai attempts to make peace with Henry. Izzy pleads to Zoe to reason with Takuya over Mikey's plan.

" _There's nothing for us back there. We have to go forward. We've got too much work to do."_

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
The newest tri. movie, while it has just about zero bearing on this story, puts us all on heightened alert when it comes to talk about Digimon getting infected, particularly as it concerns Patamon. The use of the term "corruption," and I'm being very careful to call it that instead of infection (dodged a bullet with Henry in episode 13!), refers to a different phenomenon that they're more prepared to deal with. In fact, corruption in and of itself does not play a major role in the rest of the story.

What _will_ play a role in the rest of the story, however, is whatever's going on with Patamon (you... you were assuming this, right?). After tri. it feels like giving him another problem is piling on, but this was something first brought to light in episode 17, with clues to the nature of his condition going back even earlier. It'll all unravel in due time, but rest assured he is not going to start biting TK.

A while ago on the Digital Connections forum, somebody was lamenting how authors of crossover stories sometimes see easy conflict between TK and Koichi because of TK's disdain for darkness and wanted to see a friendlier interaction between the two. Took a while, but I got there!

While we'd all probably enjoy a scene of Ken and Ewan in some sort of post-villain counseling together, it's probably best to take Ewan at his word when he says he's not ready to go there yet. While Ewan's story in Fusion is often derided as being similar to Ken's, the details paint a different picture. The fact that Ken's evil was a product of the dark spore and Ewan was simply talked into it says a lot right there.

oF-BZJn1OeQ  
B0131Z888Q


	22. 21- Running From Lions

**Neverworld**

 _Get me out of this place before I cause more damage._  
 _A small price to pay for building houses out of matchsticks._  
 _When things get too hard, you've got me to blame_  
 _for every fire that breaks out in every lover's name._  
 _\- All Time Low, "Running From Lions"_

 **Episode 21**

Koichi Kimura held his ground as he squeezed Jeri's hand in front of Takato. He had lit the fuse. He didn't know how Takato would react, but he braced himself for anything.

Takato was still frozen, still unable to process the sight of Koichi and his lover. Jeri stared back helplessly, trembling as she waited for a response. How could this be real? Surely, any moment, they were going to start laughing and say it was a joke. A cruel, unfunny joke that neither of them would ever consider. Finally, he mumbled to Jeri, "So... you and him were..."

Her mouth tried forming words, but she only squeaked out, "I..." The rest was trapped inside.

"Don't be hard on her," said Koichi. "I don't know if you would understand."

Takato's head shook. "How... how long has this been going on?"

"Since spring." Koichi thought for a moment. "Half a year."

"Half a year?" Takato whimpered. "That long?"

"Takato..." Jeri cried. "I'm so sorry..."

"No she's not," Koichi said defiantly, squeezing her hand again. "And I'm not either."

"You're... not?" Takato's voice sunk.

"We knew what we were doing. We did it anyway." Koichi gulped. "And I don't plan to stop." Takato's breathing grew heavier and his hand started shaking. Defiant, Koichi continued, "I'm not afraid anymore. I'm in love with her."

Koichi barely had time to register the scream before the punch knocked him to the ground. The impact forced one eye closed but the other, squinting, registered Takato on top of him, striking again. This time the blow smashed his nose.

"How could you?!" The tamer cried, landing another shot that disabled Koichi's other eye. "I thought we were friends!" A blow to the jaw filled his mouth with the taste of blood. "All this time and you've been..." One more punch knocked Koichi out. The last thing he heard was Jeri's helpless crying.

Yoshi clutched Takato's arm to prevent any further damage. "Takato, good God!" She tried pulling him off. She needed Sora's help.

Even after Yoshi restrained Takato, he still twisted around, trying to get free. Yoshi fought it, asking Sora, "Can you get him to medical?"

Sora looked over Koichi, frowning. "I'll figure it out. Just get him out of here."

Yoshi tried pulling Takato away, but he still resisted. "No! I need to... to..." He saw Jeri bent down over Koichi. She was still crying. He didn't say another word as Yoshi dragged him to the elevator.

Sora tried to pick Koichi up, but couldn't lift him alone. Thankfully, Ken arrived to help and together they hoisted him safely.

Jeri did nothing, only mumbling, "Koichi, why..." as they started to move him. She looked at Sora, who only stared back, shaking her head and frowning as the two digidestined carefully carried him to Leo Tower.

* * *

Henry Wong was getting impatient. He knew why Command wanted to meet with him. He was overdue for a debriefing and the inevitable news of when he'd be sent back out on patrol. If they were considering Takato to replace Marcus and Rika, there was no hope of him avoiding it. When he first returned to the castle, he wanted to stay forever, weary from all the battle and constant travel. A day later, he was already getting bored. Fighting wasn't appealing, but neither was doing nothing. He was in a troubling place, and his uncertainty made him wonder if they waited intentionally before meeting with him.

"What gives?" Terriermon ran his paw through one of the equations written on the wall in dry-erase marker. "Whenever I drew on the walls you'd yell at me."

"You probably shouldn't touch those." Henry didn't know if the scribbles were of any use now that their author had moved away. But he didn't want his partner messing with anything. Bringing Digimon to meetings upstairs usually went against protocol (reasoning that communicating with a Digimon was better handled through their partner than an officer). Henry didn't care anymore.

To Henry's surprise, only Tai entered the room. The tamer couldn't remember having a meeting without Thomas. "Hey, those are Izzy's notes!" Tai barked. His eyes darted back to Henry. "What's he doing up here?"

"Anything you're telling Henry you can tell me too," Terriermon insisted.

Still on Henry, Tai said, "We've had to deal with a lot of guys who refuse to listen to us. This isn't helping."

Henry was unmoved. "He'll behave."

"You sound awfully sure of that," Terriermon joked, erasing letters on the board, trying to spell something vulgar.

"So what, do you need my report from Isthmian? Because it's not going to be any different than Takato's."

Tai shook his head. "We need to talk about our plans going forward. We lost a lot of people this week. We need to change some things."

"I heard Takato might be switching to patrol?" Henry still didn't know how he felt about that.

"Maybe. Either way, we'll need to tighten the team up. We can't send five anymore."

Henry narrowed his eyebrows. "Where are you going with this? I'm on either way, right? Whether I want to or not?"

"No," Tai declared. "Actually, I called you up here regarding the open officer position. I'm... I'm offering it to you."

Henry leaned back, mouth hanging open. This was a major promotion, and best of all allowed him to serve somewhere other than the patrol team. He should have leaped at the opportunity. Instead, he hesitated. All he focus on was Tai's sullen expression. He took no joy extending the offer. And that was a problem.

"This was Thomas's idea, wasn't it?" Henry asked, arms folded.

Tai heaved a sigh. "Look, it's still my call and I'm still making it. Do you want it or not?"

"I don't know. I'm tired of going on patrol and this is a big deal. I just... you really think we can work together?"

The commander's head lowered. "That's up to you, really."

"Up to me? It feels like you've spent the last three months trying to ruin my life. You... you sent me out to that other castle for weeks without asking me first. You let Suzie go out and fight with Mikey... you saw how that turned out." Henry shook his head. "You even got in the way of my personal life."

Terriermon snickered. "That's putting it politely."

Henry ignored him. "It's a great offer, but Tai... you can't expect me to forget all that. Is that what you want with this?"

"No!" Tai blurted. Then he stopped and frowned. "Okay... maybe part of this is realizing we've put you through a lot lately. And... more importantly that you're still here after all that." Clenching his teeth, he leaned forward. "But when I thought about it, I realized you're the best person for this job. I know you can do it. So it's not fair if I don't offer it to you. Even if it means we'd have to... figure this out."

The tamer stared at the digidestined for a long time. All of Henry's problems over the last few months could be traced back to Tai and his decisions. He couldn't deny that a part of him was resentful. He had returned hoping to avoid Command as much as possible. All the same, the path was clear. It was the one that took him farther from fighting, even if it led him straight to his foil.

"All right," he said in a low voice. "I'll do it." He stood, looked at Tai, and bowed. "I accept."

Tai returned the gesture and extended a hand. He refused to smile. "You know... you're replacing my best friend, so... this is hard on me too."

"We're not friends," Henry replied, shaking Tai's hand. "Not now anyway." Pulling his arm back, he added, "There aren't any, uh... perks to this job, are there?"

"Uh..." Tai grimaced. "Well, we'll get you a uniform. Oh, and hey! Plenty of spots opened up so if you wanted your own room again, we can put you in the keep."

Henry thought for a moment, but answered, "Thanks, but I'm good for now."

Terriermon hopped onto Henry's head as they left the room, not ready for the commotion outside. Yoshi's mere presence raised their eyebrows. "What's going on?" Tai asked, flashing a stealthy thumb's up to Thomas, who received it with an equally subtle nod.

Davis scratched his shoulder, then reported, "Well, uh... Takato kinda beat Koichi to a pulp. So that's a thing."

"What?! Takato?! Why?"

Yoshi had her hands on her hips. "Because Jeri's been sneaking off with Koichi for the last few months. Everybody at breakfast saw it. He just snapped."

Thomas stroked his chin. "That would explain such an outburst."

"I don't know about that," Terriermon said, "Henry never did that when he heard about-"

"Shut up, Terriermon!" Both Henry and Tai shouted.

"Well, Takato's in your break area cooling off. Koichi's in medical. You guys figure it out," Yoshi said, summoning an elevator.

Tai shrugged. "Well, misconduct falls under operations, so..." He patted Henry on the shoulder and walked away.

Henry's mouth fell open, but he recovered quickly: "Well hold on... given my close ties to both Takato and Jeri, I can't be impartial, so I'm recusing myself."

Tai froze in his tracks, then grumbled and fell into his chair, glaring at the new officer. "Damn, you're a pro at this already."

* * *

Matt Ishida and Gabumon stretched out on a lawn chair atop the castle wall, overlooking the cliffs that led to the western ocean that stretched forever. The water appeared calm, with no whitecaps in sight. The steady waves suggested otherwise, but they were going to run with the idea of a static image of serene peace. He patted Gabumon's head.

Day three and he was still at ease. Life had sent him loud, dramatic and persistent signs that he needed to start over. He still needed help to see them and obey. Now, with the tragedy and tension behind him and this perfect view in front of him, he was thankful he did.

"Back," Nene said, arriving with a tray of glasses. She handed one each to Matt and Gabumon, kicked off her sandals, and joined them in an unoccupied chair. "You know, fetching drinks should be your job."

Matt smiled despite her teasing. At the old castle, he had never gotten around to finding a proper job. When the band wasn't practicing, he was left with nothing to do and the feeling of being a spare part. Here, he gained the responsibility of castle welfare. It was basically their equivalent of Jeri's position, and while it wasn't glamorous, it was meaningful. And after jumping in to bail Tommy out after a kitchen mishap the night before, he already felt like he was earning his keep.

She reached over and took his hand. "This so much better."

"Yeah."

"With any luck, we'll run out of stuff to sing about." He raised an eyebrow at her. She chuckled.

From below, they heard Mikey call out, "Nene!" She raised a hand and waved towards the shout, but didn't look at him. If he wanted her so badly, he'd pay a visit.

Which he did, scaling a tower and joining them atop the wall. "Aren't you supposed to be scouting today?"

Nene stretched her neck out. "The Monitamon are taking care of it. They'll let us know if they find anything."

"We really should do a full sweep just in case."

She frowned, picking her head up to face him. "In case of what?"

"Anybody lurking nearby. Once we know the surrounding area's secure, the Monitamon are enough, but you and Sparrowmon oughtta double check. Who knows what's lurking out there?"

Gritting her teeth, she said, "That'll take hours. There's no way anything that dangerous could be hiding right under our noses."

Mikey shrugged, grinning. "Hey, never hurts to make sure. We gotta hold the fort while Takuya and them are gone."

Nene stared at him, eyes narrowed. There was still some protest in her, but she sat up and slipped her sandals back on, mumbling, "Fine."

"Thanks." Mikey pet Gabumon. "So how are you coming along?"

"Very well," Gabumon replied. "It's quite nice out here."

"Great." Grinning at Matt, Mikey said, "So what's he capable of?"

Matt shrugged. "He's Gabumon. What else do you need?"

"Oh, you know... can he digivolve?" Mikey shook his head in disbelief. "Crazy that's all you guys can do."

With a sneer, Matt answered, "I don't know. Why do you ask?"

"Well, you know, if something bad shows up I gotta know what we have to work with."

Nene leaned in. "You don't really expect Gabumon to fight after what happened, do you?"

Matt held a hand up to stop her and answered Mikey: "No, we'll fight if we need to. But I don't get to choose whether he digivolves or not. Not the first time. We can't force it."

"Oh." Mikey looked frustrated. "That is so weird." He raised his eyebrows. "I guess maybe go out and train or something. See if you can make it happen. We want to be ready just in case."

He nodded and walked away, not noticing Matt's glare. "He didn't listen to a damn thing I said, did he?"

Nene didn't answer. She was slumped over in her chair, eyeing her feet. "That was oddly unpleasant."

"What, you never had to pick a fight with him?"

"Christopher was more confrontational in our group. Mikey and I used to get along very well."

"Used to?"

With a sigh and a nod, Nene replied, "I'll confess I'm still not completely over what he did to Angie. How could I be? I was her roommate. I saw how much she suffered. I just..." She stood, her back to Matt, a fist clenched. "I don't understand how he could be that cold to someone who loved him."

She walked away without a farewell. Matt remained, continuing to stare out at the open sea. He closed his eyes and mumbled, "It's easier than you'd realize."

* * *

Davis Motomiya paced outside Takato's room, trying to pretend guard duty was some sacred and perilous undertaking. In reality, he was cursing the other officers for thinking they didn't need to replace Ryo's castle security duties. He tried asking Yolei to do it, but her list of demands was too unreasonable and he ended up stuck with the job himself.

He didn't expect Takato to try to leave his room. The prisoner was already well aware of what he had done and how much trouble he was in. So Davis was stuck watching a door while someone wallowed in shame inside. No wonder he imagined single-handedly taking down a mob of bloodthirsty ninja trying to break in.

Instead, all he got was Jeri, stepping off the elevator and approaching him, her head held low. In that moment, Davis would have preferred dealing with the ninja. He knew what she wanted, but waited for her, after several false starts, to ask, "Can... can I talk to him?"

"Um..." Davis scratched his neck, avoiding eye contact. "Not really? I mean, he's confined to his room. It would sorta defeat the purpose."

She clasped his hands together and looked at him with pleading, desperate eyes. He couldn't say no to those. "Aw, jeez..." Davis moaned in surrender. He took a deep breath and unlocked Takato's door.

"Thank you," Jeri said, bowing. She entered, stopping in the doorway when she saw him face down on the bed, barely acknowledging the opening door. "Takato?"

He turned her way, his eyes red, his goggles halfway off his head. Takato didn't say anything before Davis put a hand on Jeri's shoulder, gently nudging her into the room so he could enter himself.

"Um..." Jeri watched Davis take a seat at Takato's desk. "This is sort of personal."

Davis shuffled uneasily. "Well... I'm already bending the rules letting you in here. You can't be alone with him. You know..." He stole a glance at Takato and lowered his head. "...for your sake."

"Davis..." Takato mumbled, a fresh wave of tears forming at the mere suggestion.

Jeri leaned against the door, rubbing her arm. "Takato, I... I wish I knew what to say. I want so much to make you feel better. But this is all my fault. And you're never going to forgive me."

Takato shook his head slowly. "Just... why?" His voice was hoarse.

She stood straight and looked him in the eyes. This was the one question she had an answer for: "Because I'm a bad person."

He sat upright, looking her up and down before shaking his head. "No... I know what you're doing. Every time you say that, I hold you and tell you you're not." His lip quivered. "Now I don't know."

Jeri slammed her eyes shut as a deep shudder rippled through her body. "But that's... that's why I love you. You believe I'm not. I need you to believe I'm not. You were the reason I got over what D-Reaper did to me. You assured me I wasn't useless when we were lost here with Tai's group and I was the only one without a Digimon. When Sora asked me to take over hospitality you convinced me I could do it. You're the only one who has faith in me."

"So... so am I wrong?"

"I don't want you to be. Every day I try to be the Jeri you think I am. But... I can't do it. There are too many days when I imagine how much happier I'd be if Leomon were still here. There are too many nights when I still feel like D-Reaper is boring into my head. I'm scared to death of having to manage the castle when Sora has to go out. And sometimes those are days where..."

She looked at Davis. He was focused on typing something into his D-Terminal. His head shook as he fought off tears. "Those are what?" Takato blurted. "Days you don't think you can talk to me?"

"No..." she answered. "Those are days when I don't want to be encouraged. When I don't want to be pushed or told that everything's okay. I just want to be... me. Broken, terrible me."

Takato gritted his teeth. "You know I can't stand you talking about yourself like that."

"I know!" she cried. "And that's why... that's why it happened. Koichi knows. He's been through it. He went through the pain. He hears the voices. He... he understands the darkness the way you never can. The way I hope you never have to." Jeri wiped her eyes. She hadn't expected the words to flow so easily. "With him I'm comfortable being myself."

"But is that good enough? Don't you want to be happy? And didn't you think about what this does to me?"

Jeri looked away, a hand clutching at her chest. "I know, and we tried to stop. It's wrong, and I know you're only trying to make me better. And you have. Just... just not enough. And I couldn't be away from him. I love you, Takato but... I need him," she sniffed.

Takato stared back, expressionless, for too long. D-Terminal back in his pocket, Davis watched both of them carefully through his cloudy eyes, only cheating to glance at the depleted box of tissues on the desk. He was tempted to make a move for one, but didn't want to interrupt. They had forgotten he was in the room and he wanted to keep it that way. He didn't want to be there either.

"Get out," Takato mumbled, barely loud enough for her to hear.

"Takato?" she whimpered back.

"I don't want to see you right now." Takato laid down in his bed, his back to both of them. "I don't know if I want to see you again."

"Takato!" Tears suddenly poured down her face. "I never wanted to hurt you. You've been the only good thing in my life! Please!" Takato only heaved a sigh.

Slowly, she took one step towards him. Then another, her hand reaching for him. Davis shot out of the chair, sensing his cue to step between them. He held Jeri by the arms. "Come on Jeri, let's go."

Jeri grabbed Davis's wrists as he tried to lead her out the door. "No! I can't lose him like this."

"I'm sorry, but..." He turned back to Takato. He seemed to be shivering. "I'm looking out for you." She still clutched Davis's arms and still sobbed, but didn't resist as he led her out the door.

Once safely out, she continued to cry. At least now he could hold her in consolation. Only a minute later, Sora stepped off the elevator.

"Jeri?" she asked. Davis backed away to let her take over. Once holding Jeri tight, Sora turned to Davis and mouthed, "Thank you."

Davis patted the D-Terminal in his pocket and locked Takato's door, leaning against it while Sora led Jeri downstairs. He took a deep breath. He really hated guard duty.

* * *

Izzy Izumi had always reasoned Takuya's Isthmian experiment was going to be a disaster. But he envisioned a debacle that ultimately would have little long-term consequence. The increased exploration and patrol would eventually draw attention from somebody dangerous, the haphazard organization would cripple their defenses, and ultimately a battle would require a unified effort from both castles to hold it off, leading to common sense prevailing. With any luck, the only harm done would be to Takuya's ego.

That changed when he heard Mikey's plan to target the other creators of the world. This course had the possibility of catastrophic consequences. If carried through successfully, Izzy foresaw a world in ruin- chaotic and potentially uninhabitable. All on a shaky hypothesis about being unable to go home while this world still existed. Yet the more objections he raised, the less anyone listened. Takuya seemed to enjoy his new power to ignore the former officer.

He tried to plead to anyone Takuya did listen to. Koji wasn't interested and Yushima insisted on letting the new leadership try things their way for a while. Izzy reasoned he had to go straight to the source. His relationship with Mikey was rocky, but at least he knew the general had enough respect to listen. It was a matter of wording it perfectly, and Izzy paced around outside the operations room as he determined how to best articulate his points.

"Izzy?" someone called. He only now noticed the door had partially opened. Craning his neck, he caught Zoe peeking from behind it.

He blushed, jumping back. "Zoe! How did you know I was out here?"

She snickered. "I heard your footsteps. Nobody else paces like that."

Izzy rubbed his neck, took a deep breath, and stepped into the room. "Anyway, it's imperative I talk to..." Nobody else was in the room. It was just her and the static crackling on her radar. "You're alone?"

"They don't like to sit around here," Zoe said. "I've been down here by myself for at least an hour. I... don't know if they want me leaving the radar unattended."

"That's awful." He shook his head in disapproval. "And you have no backup."

"Well... since you're here..." She scratched her cheek. "Would you mind sitting in while I take a break?"

"Oh, uh... of course."

Zoe threw her hands on his shoulders, reddening his cheeks again. "Thank you! I'll try not to take too long." As she ran out, he wondered what her definition of "too long" was.

He sat down in front of the monitor. At first, he attended to the job, listening closely for anything of note over the radar. There was nothing: the range of Isthmian's radar was shorter than the one he was used to. Just one of the many nagging deficiencies about this place that made him miss how things ran back home.

Back home! Of course! Izzy may not have had luck warning anyone here about Mikey's plan, but now that he was alone with the communication system he could tell Thomas. It took him a few minutes to figure out how to make this connection, but he patched through. He knew the voice on the other side would be far more reasonable than Mikey.

"Hello?" Izzy froze when he heard Kari's voice. "Zoe? Is that you?"

He hadn't calculated her into his plan. No way was she going to just put Thomas on the line without asking about his departure. He didn't want to, no- couldn't, elaborate.

"I can't hear anything you're saying. We might have a bad connection," she continued.

Or worse, what if she already knew about his night with Mimi? What if Tai knew? He couldn't imagine what they would say to him then. He didn't want to find out. It was one of the reasons he ran.

"Try calling back. I hope everything's okay over there." Izzy pounded the disconnect button and clutched his head, sprawling forward on the desk.

"Something wrong?" Zoe asked, returning with a box of digibytes.

Izzy picked himself off the desk, but still slouched in his chair. "Everything's wrong."

"I know the feeling." She pulled up a chair of her own "I really want to know why you came over here, but I hate it when I get asked so..." She sighed. "Hey, don't tell anyone I said this, but I'm not so sure about Mikey." He leaned forward, eyes begging her to continue. "I trust Takuya but... Mikey is..." She shuddered.

"Have you heard about how he thinks we can get out?"

Her eyes widened. "No. Last night Takuya said Mikey had a plan. He sounded really excited."

"His plan will literally destroy the world."

Zoe froze, her mouth hanging open. Her hands clutched the arms of her chair. "Destroy the world?" Her eyes glazed over.

Izzy nodded gravely. "Based on his fight with Quartzmon, he believes destroying the other creators will break up this world and send us all home."

She bit her lip. "That's... I mean, I watched our world get destroyed. It happened right in front of us. I was helpless to stop it." Her body started to shake. "I'm sorry I..."

With little warmth in his voice, Izzy explained, "Your experience becoming a Digimon gives you a unique attachment to the Digital World, so watching its destruction was an emotional experience. The thought of destroying this one willingly is triggering that."

"Is..." Zoe gulped. "Is he out of his mind, or..."

"While I can't disprove his logic, it's irresponsibly presumptuous. It could send us home. We could be destroyed with it. We may not survive long enough to find out."

"But why would Takuya...?"

Izzy frowned. "Most likely, he wants to demonstrate that he has a course of action whereas Thomas and I aren't confident enough in our findings." She was horrified, gasping for air. "You understand how we want to be confident before acting. The timelessness of this world affords us the chance to. The next piece of the puzzle won't be for another year, when the hunters from Mikey's world arrive. Either way, we can afford to wait."

"I can't believe this..."

Izzy leaned forward in his chair. "This may be asking a lot of you, but I can't get through to Takuya. Maybe you can. Please try."

She nodded, still in shock, no clue if she actually could and barely sure if she had the courage to bring it up. A beeping from the terminal broke her out of her trance.

Izzy looked at the monitor with some concern. "I'll... let you deal with that."

As he left, Zoe composed herself enough to answer the call. It was Kari: "Zoe? Are you there?"

"I'm here," Zoe answered. "What's going on?"

"I got a call from you just now but the connection was bad. Is everything all right?"

"That's odd, I never tried to call. Everything's..." She paused. She had too much to process to try to explain it now. "Everything's fine."

"Oh, good. I was worried."

"How's everything over there?" Surely she wasn't supposed to use the line for casual chat, but she desperately needed a distraction.

"Oh, uh..." Kari went silent for a moment, enough that now Zoe was worried about a line failure. "I... suppose you should know what happened to Koichi."

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda felt like time had stopped. Going out and fulfilling her duties on the patrol team had given her a steady rhythm. This turned the days and weeks into something palpable. Three weeks away, one week home. Three weeks away, one week home. Three weeks away, one week home. And just like that, the year would be a quarter over. Even when her schedule deviated, and it often did, this repetition was the foundation of her internal calendar. In the end, she would still be 24 and everybody else would still be at most 20, but the perception of movement kept driving her.

That perception had been lost. Her one week home had already come and gone, and she had no idea what was coming next. The rest of the patrol team had left. Marcus, Rika and Kazu were at Isthmian while Henry had just been announced as the new operations officer. The only clue to her future came after she cornered Thomas and got him to explain they were still figuring things out.

Supposedly there would still be a patrol team. Surely they still needed one. But the doubts over who would be on it and when they would leave trapped her in a void. Time didn't move. Days lasted forever with no excitement or intrigue. Pulling Takato off Koichi was hardly her idea of fun.

She found herself oddly jealous of them for having something they could get so riled up about. Unconscionable, of course, but at least they were in a situation where the stakes seemed that high. At any given moment, half the castle seemed to be caught up in some social crisis. Yoshi used to scoff at it all. Now she felt left out, roaming the perimeter of the habitat, wondering if the Digimon had their own problems or felt the same way she did. She caught herself watching them more and more often.

She didn't notice Lalamon hovering in. "Good grief, Yoshi, you're actually upset about Christopher, aren't you?"

Yoshi scowled and shook her head. She wasn't upset about being rejected. She was annoyed that she would allow herself to even suggest it. It was pathetic. It reeked of desperation. And at some point she would have to accept that her heart had been fooled enough to actually want it.

Lalamon persisted: "Just admit it. You actually liked him."

"Him? No, I..." How was she supposed to respond in a way that wasn't even sadder?

"Oh I get it! He made the first move so you thought you had a shot."

Yoshi felt a tic in her eye. She envied the kids whose Digimon reminded them of their best qualities. All Lalamon seemed to do was point out her worst.

"Just go away." Yoshi sat down on grass she wasn't sure was real, pulled her legs in tight and fumed. "All you're going to do is make fun of how ridiculous I'm being."

"At least you know you're being ridiculous. I was worried." Lalamon's tone was softer, at least until she added, "You know what's a great idea? Not being ridiculous anymore."

Gritting her teeth, Yoshi said, "Do you... not understand this is a real thing? Somebody just beat the snot out of someone- actual physical assault that would send them to prison in the human world... over their love life." Her head snapped toward Lalamon. "And you think I'm the weird one because I don't get to play at all?" Her voice steadily rose. "I'm fed up with this! I'm going to be alone here forever! That or hold my nose and settle for some... child." She shuddered. "That's even worse."

Yoshi stopped, exasperated and breathless but still with more to rant about. Instead, she heard a high, airy, barely distinct squeak from nearby: "Child." She turned to the source and found MarineAngemon listening behind a bush.

Its tamer, standing behind it, shook his head. "You had to go and open your big mouth."

"What did it say?" Yoshi asked.

Kenta shrugged. "It said if you wish you were involved with all this crap, you're being a child yourself."

"You mean some of you thought Yoshi was an adult?" Lalamon asked, earning a glare from her partner.

"Look, all I know is..." Kenta sighed. "This thing with Takato and Jeri is just bad. I'm sure he's in a lot of trouble and... worse than that is I'm friends with both of them."

"Pity," MarineAngemon said.

"Okay, I guess I don't have it worse but I have to watch this blow up and try not to pick sides and... I don't want to be anywhere near it right now. I'm just sort of hiding in here."

Yoshi scoffed. "I'm not saying I want to be involved with that! Takato's lost his mind. I just..."

"...you just want to feel like someone might be out there."

She struggled to find anything to add to that, finally conceding, "Pretty much."

"Hey, it's not much better. With Angie working with me you'd think I had a shot. She ended up with someone who treated her like garbage. Now she's ditched this place to hang out with Jeremy because he got treated like garbage. At least if you know for sure it'll never happen you can get on with your life." Kenta sighed. "At least you won't get treated like garbage."

"But what if..." Yoshi looked at Lalamon. "What if I don't want that to be my life?"

"Tough," said MarineAngemon. Yoshi stared at it. This time, she didn't need a translation. It was harsh and her first instinct was to lash out the way she did to Lalamon. But maybe it was what Lalamon was steering her towards the whole time. It was still a horrible fate, yes, but Kenta had pointed out the one silver lining. She had one thing nobody else in the world was afforded- certainty.

Lalamon drove it home: "Yoshi, it's okay to be lonely because they're all kids and you're a grown-up. But for that to work, you actually need to be the grown-up."

Kenta nodded. "Maybe this is me spending too much time in here and not in the castle, but it feels like we could really use a grown-up right now."

Yoshi looked at both of them, mouth open. In some abstract sense, it was understandable. Things were falling apart amid immaturity and hot-headedness. But there was far too much for her to do anything about, wasn't there? "Okay... fine," she stated. "But what do you expect me to do?"

Nudging his glasses up with his nose, Kenta answered, "You're the grown-up. Figure it out."

* * *

Yolei Inoue tried hard not to read anything into the sight of TK and Kari eating dinner together. No matter what happened between the two in their future back home and no matter how much Davis had accidentally told her about it, this by itself was still natural. They were still TK and Kari no matter what, and now that they were working closer together everything was bound to fix itself, right?

Cody kept staring at them, barely touching his own food. "Don't we have to do something about this?"

"About what? TK and Kari?"

"It ended up being such a mess back home. I know Davis told Kari about it but... there they are."

Yolei peered in. TK had a pleasant smile on, making cheerful conversation. Kari's head was down, wearing that worried look that was far too common lately. "We don't have to do anything at all," Yolei insisted. "We shouldn't do anything at all."

"If we just let it stay like this, what's stopping all that from happening again?"

"Well, we can't talk to her about it. You saw what happened when Davis did, and that was an accident... or at least a Davis moment. I mean, really, why bother worrying about what happened after they got here? I'm perfectly happy forgetting all that happened."

"It still happened. And I wouldn't feel right letting my friends make the same mistake."

"You haven't spoken to TK in weeks. You're just trying to keep Kari away from him, aren't you?"

Cody narrowed an eye at her. "Even if that was true, I feel history would support me."

They both looked down as TK took his and Kari's trays back to the kitchen. It didn't work; once she was alone, Kari joined them, sat, and asked, "Were you two watching us?"

Yolei held up her hands. "Us?! No! Of course not! We'd never-"

Cody didn't bother: "You two eating together is an odd sight for us."

Kari stared at him, momentarily thrown not because she was confused, but because she understood completely. She lowered her head, frowning. "Some things came up. Got a call from Zoe today. It... raised questions. He had a lot of ideas for new protocols that we'll need now. We were brainstorming them." She smiled at Yolei. "It was productive."

As an uncontrollable grin crept onto Yolei's face, Cody responded, "Davis was wrong for spilling it, but at least you understand why it's weird to us."

"Imagine what I'm going through," Kari said. "I don't even know what happened, but it apparently did... to us. And he doesn't even know." She sighed. "That's why I can't think about it. We have jobs to do. Besides..." Kari slammed her eyes closed. "It's bad enough now. I don't want to make it worse."

"But you're still uncomfortable with it," Cody persisted. Kari's eyes opened just enough to stare at him again.

"Cody..." Yolei grumbled.

"I wish I wasn't," Kari said.

"Wasn't what?" TK said, smiling as he returned. Kari shook her head; TK didn't pursue it. Instead he sat down and smiled at Yolei and Cody. "Anyone have plans for the night or same old?"

"I'm open to ideas!" Yolei said, perhaps with too much cheer to deflect the scorn in Cody's eyes.

"Davis and Ken still have to guard Takato's room," said Kari. "Maybe we should all keep them company."

TK smiled. "Anyone got extra sleeping bags lying around? We could make a night of it."

Kari's face lit up. "That's a great idea. The six of us need to do something together."

Yolei turned her smile to Cody, waiting for him to look back and process her answer to TK's question. "Well I'm in," she said, proceeding to start a list of snacks and games to steal for the event.

She kept an eye on Cody the entire time. She saw his eye twitch when TK spoke and the slightest cringe when Kari responded positively. It was only a matter of time before he slid his chair back, grabbed his tray and excused himself.

It took Kari by surprise. "Cody, wait!" she pleaded, but he was already gone.

TK shook his head angrily. Once he was confident Cody was away, he declared, "I'm over it. I apologized. Just so you two know. Now it's just him."

"I wasn't there. I'm not taking sides," Kari said, looking away from him.

Yolei nodded. "Yeah... but still..." From her angle, she could see Cody still standing near the exit. He wasn't looking back, but he wasn't moving either. He was stuck. And no matter what she felt about how he and TK were driven apart, or how stubborn he was being weeks later, she could only begin to guess what was going on in his head. She desperately wanted to know.

* * *

JP Shibayama grew impatient as he waited for Koji to arrive. It wasn't Koji he was frustrated with, but rather Zoe who insisted on waiting. They and Tommy were in an empty, unused basement room. From the grim look on the blond digidestined's face, echoed by the cold chamber, they didn't want to be there any longer than necessary.

Koji finally did arrive, wasting no time in looking impatient and frustrated himself. "Okay, what's going on?" he muttered.

Zoe heaved a sigh and looked at all three of her teammates. "Okay, don't freak out, but... Koichi was assaulted this morning."

"What?!" Koji cried. JP echoed his shock. Tommy only gasped and took a step back.

"He's okay," Zoe said, holding a hand out. "His nose was broken and they want to make sure there's nothing else wrong... like to his eye... but-"

Gritting his teeth, Koji snapped. "Who did this? I'm gonna..." His fist clenched.

"Was it Takato?" Tommy said, voice low and calm. "By any chance?"

Zoe stared back at him, frowning. "You knew about Koichi and Jeri?"

"Koichi and Jeri?" JP asked. "You mean..." JP paused, thought for a moment, then nodded. "That explains a few things."

Tommy bit his lip. "I saw them once. I thought it was better keeping it a secret. I think Mimi and Sora were the only others who knew. Guess it was only a matter of time before Takato found out."

Koji said nothing, but his eyes steeled. He stormed out of the room. The other three knew better than to let him go off alone. They followed him as he tracked down and cornered Mikey in the hallway.

"Hey Koji, what's-"

"I need to get back to the other castle," Koji replied urgently.

"What? Why?"

"There was an incident," Zoe answered. "Koichi's hurt."

Mikey's eyes widened. "Is he okay?"

"Well, he'll recover but-"

Koji finished her sentence. "-but it doesn't matter. I want to see him."

Mikey grimaced and rubbed his neck. "Well yeah, I bet, but... you know what we decided with Takuya." Koji's face reflected back terror.

"Wait, wait... what did you decide with Takuya?" JP asked.

"No going back for the first month. We need to show them we're serious about living out here. We've got enough food and supplies to last for a while, so we need to prove we can get by on our own. Especially since it's that much harder to get stuff from the river. If the river even keeps working."

"Are you saying we're stuck here?!" Zoe exclaimed. "Whose crazy idea was that?"

"Pretty sure Koji brought it up first. Takato and Henry took the train back anyway, remember?"

"There has to be a way back," Koji spat. "We made an exception for emergencies."

"Well sure, if they get attacked or something and need our help. If he's going to be okay, I can't just-"

Koji pushed forward, slamming Mikey into the wall. "Listen, I-" JP and Tommy pulled them apart. Sneering at being restrained, Koji continued, "I need to make sure he'll be okay over there. And then I need to kill Takato."

Noting Mikey's cringe, JP muttered, "Koji, you're really not helping."

Arms folded and shaking his head, Mikey said, "Well, I know I can't allow that. Look, I get what you're saying and it's tough, but you need to let Koichi get by on his own. They'll take care of him over there. So I can't make an exception just for you. I'd say the same thing if it happened to Ewan or Matt's brother. If this is going to work we all need to stick it out. That includes you and your brother." He stared at Koji long enough to make sure there would be no response. JP's arms ensured there wouldn't be. Mikey nodded at all of them and walked away.

JP hesitantly released his teammate, ready to grab him again in case of anything drastic. "You okay there?"

Koji grumbled and left, thankfully in the opposite direction as Mikey. All the same, JP followed him.

Neither Tommy nor Zoe moved. Tommy was too lost in his thoughts to go anywhere. "I guess something like this was bound to happen. I feel bad for all of them. And it's not like they have anywhere to run either." He saw Zoe shiver. "What's wrong, Zoe?"

"We can't leave?" she mumbled.

"He never said that. Just that we can't go back." Tommy chuckled. "It's not like we can't go outside and stuff."

"We can't go back... we're trapped."

"What, you want to go back already? We just got here."

She shook her head, the trouble still in her eyes. "It's not that. I just... there's nowhere to go if things go wrong. It's scary."

"Who says things will go wrong? Takuya's in charge."

With a deep sigh, she said, "Suddenly, that's not reassuring anymore."

* * *

Takato Matsuki struggled to zip up his backpack, eventually surrendering after a long fight and jettisoning a few extra shirts. Before zipping it up again, he slung it around his back and paced around his room a few times. It was heavy and cumbersome, but he knew he'd be able to handle the long treks in store for him. Surely it wouldn't be fair for Guilmon to carry the load all the time. It was manageable, but uncomfortable. This was Takato's future.

He was two days removed from the sentencing, although Command only called it a "discussion" about their plans for him going forward. Takato didn't know how much freedom he ever actually had. He didn't want to go on patrol, but he was too understanding and obedient to say otherwise. He swore at one point earlier in the week he was going to express his reluctance to accept the job. That was out of the question now: Takato was going on patrol, and other than bathroom trips he was not to leave his room until then. He accepted the punishment in silence.

That part no longer bothered him. It didn't surprise him either. In fact, he was positive that if Koji or some of the others had heard it they'd have criticized Tai for letting him off easy. What came next stung worse.

Thomas, leaning forward and staring Takato in the eyes, dropped the hammer: "Given this circumstance, and prior experience, and a range of other factors... Yoshi will be heading patrol operations."

Nothing tangible suggested he should have been the captain. Yoshi had been through the motions countless times and occasionally exhibited poise, so it was hard to object. It just felt like a slight to Takato.

He had always seen himself as the leader of the tamers, at least on an emotional level. Since their first meeting all those years ago, Tai treated him as such. The two stood alongside Takuya, Davis, Marcus, and now Mikey. Takato was excited to learn of his alleged appearance in the Quartzmon battle as it cemented his place among the six. It mattered to him. He was proud of it.

Only it didn't hold any practical meaning. Takato was a leader in name only. He never questioned the decision to let Takuya captain the old response team. In hindsight, perhaps he should have fought harder for the job, but at least he was losing out to another esteemed gogglehead. Being passed up for Yoshi hurt. Walking out of the meeting room and seeing Henry, his friend and one of his closest confidants, with his back to him, hurt almost as much.

It was his fault, of course. He lost his composure and attacked an ally. No matter why, it was inexcusable. He would have to carry his mistake with him, ushered away from the castle for a few weeks with no chance to make amends and no opportunity to prove that he ever belonged as a leader. He began to doubt it himself.

As he slung on the pack, he looked in the mirror. He appeared weak and uncertain, a far cry from the confidence that Takuya or Mikey always seemed to exude. The only part that made him feel good were the goggles strapped around his forehead. Whatever cosmic coincidence put them atop everyone's heads, they meant something. It was why he insisted that Marcus don a pair, and why it still bothered him that his former roommate still refused to wear them after Patamon's death. They were his status. Perhaps literally- maybe they were the only reason Tai ever confused him for a leader.

No more confusion: Takato pulled them off and buried them in his pack. He hoisted the bag and headed downstairs.

He hoped to make a clean getaway. He didn't want to answer questions or rebuild bridges or share his pain. If he was to be exiled, why wait? But Jeri stood at the castle doors. He tried not to look at her.

"Takato... I'm sorry it happened this way." He stopped in front of the doorway and closed his eyes as she continued, "But it was only because I couldn't let either of you go. And I still can't. I wish I had the answers, but..." Her sniffling silenced her.

He didn't budge. He heard every word. Somehow it didn't affect him.

She continued anyway. "I don't know how but... I want to fix this. I need to fix this. I can't leave you like this. You don't deserve it."

It sounded empty. He heard her words. He was sure she meant it. At the moment, he didn't care. He didn't want to deal with it anymore. He just wanted to be away from it. For all of the hazards of the patrol with the potential to hurt him, at least he knew the blows wouldn't come from his friends. Takato flung the door open, clutched the strap of his pack, and marched out without a word.

The outer gate was already open and his new teammates were already waiting on the other side of the wall. Takato's pace quickened as he saw Guilmon. Had he not been lugging a heavy pack he probably would have run. He dropped it halfway, falling to his knees and hugging his partner. He knew how pathetic he would look if he cried; it had only been a couple days. He fought hard to contain himself, but he was still happy to see a face he knew would be unconditionally friendly. This separation was the worst part of his punishment.

Yoshi rolled her eyes and retrieved Takato's pack. She dropped it between him and Cody and used her digivice to order the doors closed. "Come on, let's go," she muttered, turning around and sneering at the sheet containing their agenda for the trip. When she didn't get a response, she looked back.

Takato now only had a hand gently squeezing the back of Guilmon's neck, but he stared up at the wall and giant closed gates leading back into the castle. Cody watched him with his usual hardened focus. He too turned his head up to the wall. The slightest shiver ran through him.

Exasperated, Yoshi turned to Lalamon, but her partner only watched the boys with sad eyes. The old patrol team was headstrong, powerful, seasoned, and knew each other's tendencies and weaknesses. Most importantly, they were up for the job. Takato and Cody weren't here because they were cut out for patrol work. They were here to escape. They were broken-hearted, betrayed, and felt abandoned by their closest friends.

Somehow, Yoshi would have to make this work. She would have to rise above the constant aching and her eternally unrealized desires. She would have to be the grown-up. She sighed, approached them, and put her arms around their shoulders. She pulled them in, cradled their heads and just held them for a moment, closing her eyes and imagining them doing the same.

With a deep exhale, and trying to impersonate somebody gentle, she said, "There's nothing for us back there. We have to go forward. We've got too much work to do."

She felt Cody's nod and pulled away. He motioned for Armadillomon to start the hike. Takato was equally silent and gave away nothing, but he donned his pack again, pet Guilmon once more and followed Cody. Yoshi didn't know if they were better, or if she was only fooling herself into thinking she could comfort them, but all that mattered now was they were on their way.

* * *

Keenan Crier stood back and watched Ryo check his work. He had discovered the fissure in the rocky cliff the day before and only hoped the others found it as strange as he did. Takuya watched eagerly; his insistence on investigating anything suspicious had brought them there and he was hoping the trip would bear fruit. He, Marcus, Rika and Kazu hung further back. For some reason, they always seemed to keep a distance from Cyberdramon. Keenan didn't understand why.

"There's definitely air coming out of it, but it could be anything." Ryo stared at the crack. "Why call us all the way out here?"

"Smell it," Keenan answered.

Ryo did, wincing a bit at the odor. He turned around, staring at Keenan while he tried to place it. It took him a while. He approached Falcomon, eyes narrowed. He bent over and took a good long sniff of the owl's wing.

"Pardon you," Falcomon blustered.

Ryo ignored him, staring at Keenan again before mumbling, "Smells like dander. But... the kind that comes from birds. It's coming from a Digimon. Probably a big one."

Takuya grinned. "Giant bird blowing air out of a mountain? Marcus?"

Marcus cracked his knuckles. "Well, it's worth popping in for a look. Guardromon?"

Kazu's partner positioned himself, aimed at the fissure and fired: "Guardian Barrage!"

The missiles widened the hole, revealing a narrow entrance. Takuya was eager to explore it. Marcus and Keenan followed him. The wind slowed them, more due to the smell than the intensity. Ryo and Kazu held back, their Digimon too large to fit. Rika feigned the same argument.

As they watched the exploring party disappear into the makeshift cave, Ryo folded his arms. "Giant monster in there and we're just gonna poke it with a stick to see what happens?" He eyed Rika. "You're okay with this?"

Kazu snickered. "Dude, when you've been on Marcus's team for long enough..."

Rika was too focused on the defaced cliff to listen. Renamon answered for her: "If you were with us fighting Algomon, you'd understand what we're facing. And if it's anything like Algomon, why it needs to be destroyed."

A shriek, shrill and deafening, blasted out of the cave, followed by a massive burst of air that blew out half the cliff and the entire exploration team. The rest of the cliff collapsed on itself, forcing Takuya, Marcus and Keenan to scramble back to avoid the falling debris and clouds of dust. Pulling his goggles over his eyes, Takuya was the first to see the creature in the daylight, unfurling its massive blue wings and shrugging off the falling rock like pebbles. Even as giant boulders fell on it, it cried again and took to the air.

"I think we found one..." Takuya mumbled.

The air cleared enough for everyone else to see the beast circle above. "Impossible!" Falcomon exclaimed. "I thought it was extinct!"

"Anything goes here," Ryo replied. "Including Ornismon, apparently."

"Friend of yours?" Rika shouted.

"I've heard things. Giant, intimidating, attacks anything that moves..."

Ornismon swooped down, firing a laser attack that sent everybody scrambling and sliced through the solid earth.

"You'd think they would keep something like that locked up," Renamon mumbled.

"Well if they could seal it up, we can take it down!" Takuya clutched his D-Tector. "Come on, ancient Digimon with a mean streak in a funky cave? This has to be one of them! Unity Execute! Unified Spirit Evolution!" EmperorGreymon flew after it. Once Keenan got to his feet, Ravemon joined him.

"Spiral Raven Claw!" Ravemon spun forward, slashing Ornismon's shoulder with his claw.

"Dragonfire Crossbow!" From below, EmperorGreymon opened fire on Ornismon's neck. Additional attacks from Cyberdramon and Guardromon on the ground annoyed it further. Ornismon responded angrily to every blow, but nothing appeared to harm it. It shot its laser around, targeting both his airborne opponents. Both barely dodged.

Agumon jumped in place. "Boss, let's get in there!"

"No, we should get out of here!" Rika shouted at Marcus. "You really expect to punch a god?"

Marcus only grinned. "You say that like I haven't done it before." He turned to Ryo. "Wanna give me a lift?"

Ryo raised an eyebrow. "For the record, I think you're crazy too." Still, he held out his digivice. "Bio-Merge Activate!" Justimon grabbed Marcus and took a mighty leap up towards Ornismon, throwing him into the air. While EmperorGreymon and Ravemon continued to distract it, Marcus landed a punch on the bird's beak.

Ornismon responded with a flap of his wing that sent Justimon flying backwards, but Marcus was unharmed. Falling to his apparent death, yes, but with enough DNA in his fist to call ShineGreymon into action.

"Glorious Burst!" ShineGreymon wasted no time firing off a light attack. It landed, Ornismon shrieked in pain and covered its crest with its wings, flying upward to avoid more.

"All right! Keep it up!" Marcus shouted as he continued to plummet.

Before he crashed to the ground, Sakuyamon caught him. She glared at him, to which he only grinned back and said, "I knew you would."

With three Mega level Digimon in the air attacking it, Ornismon reeled higher and higher into the air, constantly peppered by painful blasts from EmperorGreymon, Ravemon and Justimon. Sakuyamon stayed on the ground, protecting Marcus and Keenan from harm.

As the trio weakened and distracted it further, ShineGreymon soared up at it, its wings glowing. The other three pulled away as the attack powered up. "Shining Bl-"

A massive flap from Ornismon's wings blew it out. Its Tempest attack generated huge gusts of wind, slowing and stopping ShineGreymon and preventing the others from drawing closer. One final burst sent all four to the ground.

Ornismon then swooped, firing its laser across the ground, striking the four Megas before they could get to their feet. Unable to dodge, they were hit directly, all crying out in pain. ShineGreymon and Ravemon de-digivolved down to Rookie, Justimon became Ryo and Monodramon, while EmperorGreymon reverted to a stunned Takuya.

The dive bomb didn't stop. Now Ornismon had its eyes on Marcus.

"Spirit Strike!" Sakuyamon tried to intervene. Another tempest blew her backwards and sent Marcus sprawling to the dirt. Ornismon continued its descent, opening its beak as it flew parallel to the ground towards its defenseless target.

"Gatling Attack!" Two homing missiles slammed into its head, disrupting it just enough to fly over Marcus. It shook it off and found the source: Andromon, standing with Kazu fifty yards away. As soon as they locked eyes with Ornismon, they turned and ran. Ornismon cried out and pursued.

"Are you crazy?!" Keenan shouted.

"Kazu, what are you doing?!" Ryo added. "You're too slow. You're dead meat!"

Whether or not Kazu heard, he was prepared. "Digi-Modify! Speed activate!" Kazu jumped aboard his partner as Andromon sped up and he was able to stay ahead of the giant bird chasing him.

Takuya was just getting to his feet when he saw them. "What the hell is he doing?"

"We're sitting ducks with our Digimon down. And Ornismon won't stop until we're dead." Ryo looked down. "He's getting it away from us."

"How's he going to get away?"

"I don't think he thought that far," said Marcus.

Andromon's speed boost at least gave him a fighting chance, but Ornismon still gained on him. As the result looked inevitable, Takuya looked to the air and saw the spinning pillar of raw data stretching endlessly into the sky. He didn't know if Kazu had noticed it. "Kazu! Watch for the stream!"

Kazu was too far away to hear it, but it didn't matter. He had seen it long ago. In fact, he steered Andromon towards it, daring to look back to see if Ornismon was following, maneuvering just in time to avoid its Cosmic Ray. It still drew closer as the stream neared.

"Dive!" Kazu shouted. Andromon dropped to his knees, throwing Kazu off him. He tucking into the fall and covered his head. Ornismon didn't react in time and flew just over their heads and past them. It turned its head and tried to correct its course, so it didn't notice the stream until it was already pulling its wing in. Powerful as the creature was, it was no match for the force of nature and was sucked in helplessly.

"Yes!" Takuya pumped a fist. From the distance, it looked like a rousing success.

Kazu picked his head up and heaved a sigh of relief, trying to ease backwards to avoid the stream himself. It was still heading towards him. He tried to scramble, but only got as far as Andromon before he collapsed. He was too exhausted from the run, too sore from the fall, too relieved from evading Ornismon to pull another narrow escape so quickly. Andromon hadn't even gotten to his feet; surely the card's effect had worn off anyway. Kazu took Andromon's hand, closed his eyes and prayed to himself as he stream pulled him and his partner into the unknown.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 22: "Now I Am an Arsonist"**  
While Kazu attempts to survive landing in hostile, unexplored terrain, Mikey and Takuya disagree on whether to ask Command for help finding him. Zoe's faith in Takuya continues to erode and leads to drastic actions. Ken and Rika's unexpected struggle with their separation lead them dangerously close to others.

" _I know you're just having a moment of weakness, but you're about to make a mistake... and I'm about to let you."_

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
Takato's reaction to Koichi's bombshell feels extreme, but my reasoning with it is his primal rage after witnessing Leomon's death. Sweet as he is most of the time, he does lash out under extreme circumstances. This was evidenced in episode 5 when he attacked Koichi after Jeri was injured in the Etemon fight.

As fans we commonly like to assess the evolution mechanics of later seasons in comparison to the relative simplicity of season one (and five... which is really basic considering Marcus's method to get a DNA Charge). In this light, Frontier and Fusion especially are often viewed unfavorably. Mikey talking about Gabumon inverts this by criticizing the Adventure mechanic for being too limited.

Don't read too much into all the shipteasing flags in Izzy and Zoe's scene. Remember that in tri. Izzy isn't just shown to get flustered over Mimi: he gets flustered over any pretty girl who gives him attention. Also, everyone needs to imagine this scene in the Japanese version and both of them calling the other "Izumi-san."

While Takato is undoubtedly the main character of Tamers, there's plenty of debate over whether he's really the team leader. Leave it to him to have his own existential crisis over whether he deserves to be his season's gogglehead.

Ornismon is best known as the giant destructive bird Murmukusmon summoned in the Frontier movie.

yThXxkHU4UU  
B01AJP7IBE


	23. 22- Now I Am An Arsonist

**Neverworld**

 **Author's Note**  
Once again, I split this last block up in order to get these three chapters out. With all the distractions I had over the summer, there was no way I'd be able to post straight through without a huge delay. So you're getting two mini-delays instead. My goal is to resume in early January and post the last four chapters, finishing the story right before the next tri. movie! Also, this ends on a nasty cliffhanger, so that's a plus too!

 _You were just an astronaut floating on a spark._  
 _Tearing up the atmosphere, burning down the dark_  
 _as you fell in. The heat against your skin._  
 _Til it got too bright to see._  
 _\- Jonathan Coulton, "Now I Am an Arsonist"_

 **Episode 22**

Kazu Shioda needed to hide. The moment the data stream dropped him into wherever the hell he was, his first priority was making sure Ornismon wouldn't find him. He and Guardromon were in what used to be a forest. Most of the ground was littered with large stumps. Other trees had burned down or stood dead and smoldering. A couple were still on fire, annoying Kazu's nose with ash and smoke. There was no canopy to speak of; the sun was bright and blinding, disregarding the plumes from the fires.

He heard Ornismon's cry overhead. It was circling, occasionally firing an aimless laser into the ground. As the terrain was already ruined, it was barely altered. Still, Kazu had to get away before he was spotted. Only one of the trees seemed to have any life in it- a tall sequoia boldly defying death a hundred yards away. Kazu sprinted for it, pulling Guardromon along. They heard another shriek and hoped they hadn't been spotted. As they neared, the screeching grew louder, the laser striking closer to them. He kept running, daring to look up in time to see Ornismon fire a wind gust at him. It blew them off the ground, sending them flying. Looking ahead, Kazu confirmed they were flying uncontrollably into the tree. He put his arms in front of his head and hoped he'd at least be able to walk after the crash.

He did fly into the tree... literally _into_ the tree. His crash against the smooth metal floor was more of a slide, ending with a bang into the far wall. Everything hurt, but nothing broke. Guardromon bounced off the floor and landed next to Kazu. They quickly turned around in time to see Ornismon's Cosmic Ray slam against the tree bark, somehow not penetrating through. Kazu curled into a ball, rubbed his sore shoulder and legs and watched the onslaught as Guardromon stood at the ready.

As Ornismon refused to let up, Kazu tried to control his breathing. He was alone, penned into a corner with an immensely powerful Digimon breathing down his neck. Worse yet, he had no idea where he was, no idea how to get back, and no idea how to attain this information. What he saw of the terrain was unfamiliar, so he was probably somewhere on the new continent. Nobody knew the geography here. Even if he did, it wouldn't help. If it was possible to navigate by the sky or what passed for stars here, Kazu didn't know how. None of this mattered. For now, all he could do was wait out Ornismon's siege in his tiny, empty prison.

Ornismon gave up after half an hour, but Kazu was too nervous to budge. Was he being baited? Would he lose his head the moment he stepped outside? If Ornismon really was another of the creators, that meant some degree of intelligence beyond that of the primal monster Kazu had witnessed. Nasty as Algomon was, he spoke, hatched plans, laid traps in his lair and imprisoned without killing. Ornismon was nothing like that. And Takuya's team nearly got killed hunting it based on a wild presumption.

Kazu waited another two hours, snacking on some water and digibytes from his pack and wondering how long he'd have to ration them. He sent a distress call with his D-Power, but it wouldn't do any good if he was out of everyone's range. Finally he decided the silence was long enough and he'd have to brave a look outside before it got dark.

After making sure Ornismon was nowhere in sight, Kazu tried scaling the tree. He found a bit that didn't swallow him in and started climbing, getting about five feet before falling on his ass. He slashed wings onto Guardromon and flew him up instead.

They found secure branches, offering them enough of a view while maintaining cover. Kazu's heart sank when he saw where he was, for several reasons. One was the lack of any nearby coast and thus any landmark to orient himself and know which way to go. If he did dare move, he'd have no idea whether he'd be getting closer or father away from Isthmian.

That wasn't the worst of it. Everything he saw was scorched. This former forest stretched for miles, all stumps and dead vegetation. Beyond that was more trouble in every direction. At one end, a patrol of Troopmon marched across the prairie, stopping once to open fire on a Digimon too small for Kazu to see and identify. At the other were patches of village-, most of them burned to the ground. The few that still stood has large plumes of dark smoke within them. Between them, Kazu finally spotted Ornismon, in combat with a stubborn Digimon who, while much smaller, traded blows with equal power. A D-Power reading turned up the name Barbamon and offered a list of reasons for Kazu to hide from that one too.

This was the new continent everyone was so excited to explore. Everything was disaster, filled with nasty, powerful and organized enemies seizing territories and using their rule to become even more invincible. What was to be gained charging out here? This was no place to hunt for clues or pretend they could gain some sort of foothold. It was hard enough pacifying their original continent. Even if they tried clearing out the filth for moral reasons, they'd have to be far more organized and use far more numbers than Takuya had planned for.

They didn't watch the rest of the fight. Guardromon flew Kazu back to the entrance to the hollow tree. The tamer rolled out a mat and laid down, using his pack as a pillow as he tried to force himself to sleep. He hoped to avoid breaking into tears, but it was unavoidable given his situation. It would take days for him to be rescued, if they could even find him. The only thing he could do was close his eyes and dream of a way to stay alive until then.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara bounced on the balls of his feet, looking over Zoe's shoulder as she tried to pick up a signal. He was worried about Kazu, of course, but fretted over the implications of losing him more. Zoe picking up his location was their last hope.

She pulled her headset off and shook her head. "Nothing. I don't even know what I'm listening for."

Ryo stood from his seat in the corner. "So what do we do now? Search party?"

"You know we can't do that," Takuya's answer was instant and firm. "We'd either have to send people out alone or leave the castle undefended."

Mikey stroked his chin. "How long do you suppose we could get away with leaving it undefended?"

"Hey, none of that now! We can't risk everything to find one guy."

Despite the eye tic, Mikey managed to stay calm. "We... need to do whatever it takes to get him back."

"Look, I'm..." Takuya wasn't as successful. "Can we not freak out here?!" He turned back to Zoe. "Keep looking! Maybe he'll show up!"

She frowned back. "This radar isn't strong enough. It's the old one we used before Thomas got here and helped design the upgraded model."

"Could the one at the other castle find him?" Ryo asked.

"Maybe. I can send a message to Kari with the information."

As she turned to the screen, Takuya pulled her arm away from the keyboard. "Are you crazy? We can't tell them what happened!"

Zoe ripped her arm free, staring at him in shock. "What are you talking about? They might be able to do something we can't."

"But... we're out of their range. Even if they did, they'd-"

"That's for monitoring. They might be able to scan farther if they know what they're looking for. Who knows what Thomas can pull off? Even if not, maybe he ended up in range for them. He could be anywhere, remember?"

She started typing her message. Takuya cringed as she explained what had happened. He wanted to suggest edits, but then decided, "No, don't send it. Let's fix this first."

Mikey stood, eyes narrowed at the other leader. "What's wrong with asking for help?"

Takuya turned to him, hands flailing. "And tell them we picked a fight with Ornismon and Kazu's in real trouble because of it?! They'll never take us seriously!"

It opened Mikey's eyes, but didn't change his mind. "I... we... we can't-"

"I know what you're gonna say and you're right, but...!" Takuya looked over his shoulder at Zoe, still typing despite his order. "They're going to think we're failing. They'll never support what we're doing. It's like we're crawling back to them and admitting we were wrong. We can't do that!"

"I know but... Kazu..." Mikey cleared his throat. "Look, you put me in charge of everything that goes on in the castle. That means this is my call."

"Hey, this is your head too!" Takuya snapped back. "This whole thing about hunting gods and stuff is your idea. That's why we went after Ornismon in the first place! Do you really want them knowing your plan nearly got us all killed? They're already pretty pissed at you."

"I..." Mikey froze. Zoe stopped typing and waited for them.

"At least give us some time to figure it out ourselves. I'm sure it'll be fine. Kazu can handle things on his own for..." Takuya didn't want to guess how long Kazu and Guardromon could realistically survive in the wild. "Don't throw all this away!"

Mikey wiped sweat off his forehead, suddenly struggling to breathe. He winced in pain, jamming his eyes closed and exhaling loudly. His voice was low, forcing out each word: "I can't turn my back on him."

Takuya frowned. "That's what it always comes back to, doesn't it? Come on, don't you believe in this? Don't you believe in your own theory?" Through gritted teeth, he added, "Dude, do you believe anything?"

Falling back into a chair, Mikey clutched his forehead. "Zoe, send the message," he ordered.

As Takuya watched Mikey's face turn pale, Zoe said, "I already had." His head darted towards her. She was glaring at him.

He scolded her anyway. "I told you to wait for us to make a decision."

"Somebody's life is on the line and you're worried about looking bad? What is wrong with you?"

"Look, I just-"

"You're just afraid of being wrong about all this. Is being right more important than us being safe? Is that what kind of place this is?" She shook her head. "What happens if it turns out this was all a big mistake?"

"It's not a mistake!" He shouted back. Zoe stared at him for a moment, then put her headset back on to filter him out and turned back to the screen to hide her face. Takuya looked at the others in the room, getting no sympathy from Ryo while Mikey looked sick. He stormed out, never noticing how much Zoe's hands shook as she waited for a response.

* * *

Jeri Katou stared at the stacks of papers on her desk with scorn. No matter how much she worked, they never seemed to shrink. She never had this feeling before. Some days, in fact, she wished there was more to do in the office. Now she just wanted to get away from it. The entire hierarchy had changed around her, and she found herself hating it.

She had known Henry for far too long to feel comfortable working under him all of a sudden. Even worse, he was still learning the ropes of castle operations. Assignments and routines once automatic under Izzy were complicated, described poorly and sometimes omitted entirely. She found herself trying to remember all the irregular tasks she was supposed to be doing or delegating, but she doubted she could recall everything and stopped trying after a couple days. If Henry didn't have it on the sheet, it didn't get done.

Passing jobs on to Suzie again was weird too. She had plenty of experience doing them, but with her carried the stigma of why she was back in hospitality. This was a girl who wanted to get out and do something different, seized her opportunity to do so, crushed it, then through no fault of her own suffered a devastating loss that planted her right back where she started. With Sora often on assignment, Jeri needed to rely on Suzie, but felt bad saddling her with strenuous or gross jobs that needed doing. Suzie never said anything to protest, but Jeri could only wonder how okay she really was.

She confirmed the day's river order and stared at the rest of her pile. With a long arm stretch she turned to her companion and declared, "I could take a break. Do you want to take a break?"

Koichi's first reflex was to frown, shooting pain through his jaw. Rubbing it, he answered, "I don't do anything anyway. And you weren't at your desk very long. Are you done already?"

"Not even close!" She smiled brightly. "But it's a great day for a walk, don't you think?"

"Same weather it always is. Whose Digimon can we borrow if we want to go outside?"

Before they could decide, Sora threw the door open and rushed in. "Jeri, I need to go out today, so I won't be able to get Ophani refreshed. Can you take care of that?"

"Oh, I'm..." Jeri pointed at the pile. "I'm pretty swamped. But I'm sure it'll be fine if we leave it for tomorrow."

Sora frowned, but answered, "Your call. You got that hammer ordered, right?"

A jolt ran through Jeri's spine. "The hammer..." she mumbled.

"Jeri..." Sora moaned. "Remember, I left you a note this morning. Jeremy needed a replacement for the one he broke."

"How did he break a hammer?" mumbled Koichi.

With a sigh, Jeri said, "I'm sorry, it slipped my mind and the order's already through." She smiled anyway. "At least we have a built-in excuse!"

Sora's eyes steeled up. "Don't even think about it. They're tracking river shortages upstairs and we can't mess up their info to cover our mistakes. You have to be more careful."

"Okay! Okay!" Jeri forced a chuckle and added, "I was just joking!" Sora narrowed an eye at her, then stared at Koichi for far too long before exiting. Jeri heaved a sigh. "I definitely need a break."

"You know... someone does need to go through Ophani," said Koichi, eyeing the ground. "The shower by my room is out of clean towels."

"You don't use the bath?" Jeri checked the door, then looked back at him and grinned. "You know, if we sneak in late..."

"Joe says I shouldn't use the bath until the stitches are out." He adjusted his eye patch. "If one opens up while I'm in there it could be a problem."

"Oh..." Jeri looked down, then stood. "Why don't we make it fast then? Maybe I can still get to it." She reached for his hand. He popped out of his chair and took it.

They didn't leave the castle, settling for a short walk to the kitchen and back. On the way, they found Suzie sweeping the floor outside the bath. Still clutching Koichi's hand, Jeri asked, "How's it coming?"

Suzie shrugged. "Um... getting there? I think I'll be done on time!"

"I don't suppose there's any chance you could-"

"Nope! My day's pretty full, remember?" Suzie glanced at Jeri and Koichi's connected hands and turned away from them.

"I guess so," Jeri forced a smile. "Keep up the good work!"

"Mmm hmm!" Suzie didn't look up again.

Despite their relationship now being public and with no other suitors around, they still found a place to sit away from other eyes. Still holding Koichi's hand, Jeri shook her head. "Everything's fine, right? We'll get through this, everybody will adjust and we'll be able to be together properly. Right?"

"You're not okay," he said, his voice hushed.

"It doesn't matter." She squeezed his hand tighter. "I have you."

"It does matter though. Jeri... you're slipping." He took her other hand. "It's like you're not motivated anymore. I know it would be great if we could just run off and be alone together, but you have a job to do. And you're not doing it the way you can be."

Her eyes closed as she took in the words. With a sigh, she admitted, "It just feels... pointless. Like it's a distraction from the things that really matter. Like you."

Koichi exhaled. "You need him. Don't you?"

Eyes jolting wide, Jeri replied, "No! Don't take it like that! I mean I feel bad for what we did to him but..."

"Jeri, it's okay. I... I promise I won't leave you." He pulled his hands in closer to his chest. "I will never do that again. But you can't just hide down at the bottom with me. You're so much better than that. If I can't motivate you to give your everything..." He stared at her with his good eye. "You need to be with someone who will."

"But he's gone," she sniffed. "It's over. It's not like we can do anything about it, can we?"

He shook his head. "I don't know." He pulled her in and held her more, letting the time pass and the work go unfinished.

* * *

Jeremy Tsurgi tried not to appear intimidated staring at the massive server cabinet on the floor beneath the command room. Thomas summoned him for a reason, and he had to look like the right man for the job. He wasn't a computer expert, nor did he pretend to be, so tinkering with anything this important and this technical scared him. Thankfully Thomas made clear that he and Kari would be doing all of the necessary interfacing and he was just there to help with hardware upgrades.

As Jeremy unscrewed a server from its mounting rack, Thomas explained, "With the right upgrades and installation of the relevant data signatures, Kari should be able to conduct a search for Kazu that spans the entire world."

"Why haven't we installed this before?" Kari asked.

"The radar will be down and you can't search for anything else. And these upgrades don't affect our normal range. At best it might cut down on communication disruptions with Isthmian."

Jeremy pulled the server out. "What do you mean by relevant data signatures?"

"We keep regular data backups of all of the humans and Digimon in the castle."

"You have all of my data stashed somewhere?! That feels like an invasion of privacy."

Thomas chuckled. "It's only useful in situations like these, and possibly in the unlikely event of a corruption." He shrugged. "Talk to Izzy. For some reason, he was insistent on it."

Reaching a point where Thomas needed to take over, Jeremy took a seat next to Kari. He snickered and said to her, "So one week in and Takuya already messed up bad."

Kari kept a straight face. "It's hard to feel good about this when someone's in trouble. I hope we find him."

It took away his smile, but he continued, "Still, we were right. It must be a mess over there."

"It does sound like things aren't going very well."

"Good. Serves Takuya right for pulling all this."

"Jeremy, we have friends over there. We don't want to see them hurt."

"They shouldn't have followed him!" Jeremy grunted angrily. "You better hope I never see Takuya again... hey, if I follow the proper code, can I challenge him to a duel?"

Kari shook her head. "Sorry. But if it makes you feel better, I think Zoe's realizing that she made a mistake."

Jeremy furrowed his eyebrows. "Why should that make me feel better? Do you have any idea what she said to me?! How can she change her mind now?!"

Thomas shushed them; Kari nodded back an apology and lowered her voice. "I'm sure she didn't mean it. She really liked you. She just..." She sighed. "She just made up her mind that this was a good idea and no one was going to talk her out of it." Looking down, she added, "I wish I had tried harder."

"Then what's the point of worrying about her?" He folded her arms. "We told her why it was a bad idea, she didn't listen, and now she's upset because it was a bad idea. Why think about it?"

"Because she made you happy." Kari frowned. "And we made her happy. Happier than she ever had been since I've known her." She folded her hands on her lap. "And you and Zoe need to remember that."

"Just me and Zoe, huh? What about you?" Jeremy grinned slightly. "Been a while since you've been Miss Cheerful around here."

Kari's mouth fell open. "Well... I mean... it makes me happy when Zoe's happy..."

Jeremy nodded, still holding onto a faint smirk. It dropped when the door opened and TK rushed in, found Kari, and asked, "The radar's been down for a couple minutes now. Is everything all right?"

She straightened herself, meeting TK's gaze with narrowed eyebrows. "We're trying to find Kazu. We're working as fast as we can."

"What are we supposed to do until then? Sora and Joe are on a mission. Don't they need-"

"Sit tight! We're saving somebody here!" Jeremy argued back. TK frowned, shook his head and left.

Jeremy's grin returned as he nudged Kari's shoulder. "No wonder you're not happy. Zoe's gone, so you have to start all over with the noob."

"No, that's not it!" Kari said, surprised by the dismissive tone. "TK's really great. It's just that-"

"Jeremy," Thomas interrupted. "Going to need your help with this motherboard. How are you with a soldering iron?" Jeremy returned a sharp nod and popped out of his chair to join the cause.

Kari looked back at the door, waiting for a moment before slumping in her chair again, folding her arms as she waited for her turn to contribute.

* * *

Ken Ichijouji never got tired of handling transportation for response team assignments. It got him out of the castle, allowed him to see the sights around the world, and rarely involved too much stress. Sometimes a tense situation would require him and Davis to be on guard to provide emergency backup, but the Devas attack on Isthmian Castle was the only time he could remember being needed. Most of the time, they were free to relax. In this case, it was on the sandy shore of an island as Joe and Sora dealt with some unsettled shouting overheard from an inland Betamon habitat. Whatever was going on, he was confident they'd be able to calm everything down with no fuss. He stretched out on the beach while Davis ran around playing with Veemon, Wormmon and Hawkmon.

He wasn't sure why Yolei came along. This felt like a simple two-person job, and unlikely to escalate into anything Gomamon and Biyomon couldn't handle. But she stretched out near him, playing with the sand between her toes. The contented look on her face suggested she offered to tag along.

Grinning at her, he said, "Are you only here to enjoy the fresh air?"

"Sometimes you have to enjoy the perks of the job." Yolei returned a smile and arched her back. Her shirt was tight enough that the view of her chest made Ken flinch and look away. "I should go ask how long they'll be. That water's begging me to pop in."

"Don't tell me you brought a swimsuit."

"Nope." She chuckled.

Ken frowned. "In broad daylight? Davis is right over there."

"Is it that big a deal? Not like I haven't fooled around with Davis before. I'll admit it." She flared her eyebrows at him. "Unlike some people."

Turning away and clearing his throat, Ken replied, "What about me? I'm here too."

She didn't have an answer. He faced her and waited for her to reply, "I guess not."

"I'm not stopping you. I'm just..." Now she waited for him. Her grin was gone, her eyes suddenly softer. He didn't have a response. After giving up on finding one, he lost himself watching her breathe.

She gulped. "I... I understand. You're with someone." After a laugh that was far too loud, she added, "Can't have you tempted by this hot bod!"

Once her laughter subsided, they faced the water. Yolei leaned forward and cradled her legs.

It took a while before she tried speaking again, their silence filled by the surf and Veemon's laughter. The day was too nice to sour with unpleasant talk but it was too hard to avoid. "It must be hard for you with her over there."

Now Ken's breath was heavy and he refused to look at her. "It's not that different from her on patrol."

"But Ken it's... on patrol there was a schedule. You knew when she'd be back. And you knew who was in charge. We don't know what's going on over there."

"Kari promised to keep me updated." Ken looked down. "But I haven't heard much."

Yolei frowned. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't make you worry. I'm sure she's fine. She wouldn't have gone if she didn't trust them."

He shook his head. "She doesn't."

"And you still let her go?"

"It's Rika. I could never talk her out of it." He continued to stare into the sea, his eyes now wet. "We've never been as close as we were the day she left. We really care about each other. And now she's gone..." He drew air in slowly as the reality confronted him. "I don't know when I'll see her again."

"It bites," Yolei replied, shaking her head. "You think you've got everything figured out and then... look, I can't hold down a boyfriend to save my life. I know all about this."

Her words didn't help. Ken was too preoccupied with what suddenly appeared to be a confounding mistake.

"Ken?" she said, drawing his eye just for a moment. He turned away, but had her attention. "You do know that if you need to talk to somebody about this stuff... I am here. I mean I know Davis is too but... you know... I understand. It's hard. Just so you know." Ken didn't respond. "I'm serious. You have no idea how much I want to scoot over there and hold you right now."

Her words alarmed him, pulling his eyes back to her. She stared at him out of the corner of her eye, frowning and taking long, drawn out breaths. "So why don't you?" he asked.

She faced him properly, finally giving him a glimpse of the sadness she'd been bearing too. Somehow he had always found this side of her even more beautiful. He almost didn't hear her when she answered, in a whisper, "Ken... we both know the answer to that."

* * *

Izzy Izumi wasn't accustomed to things not being his problem. He was restless after hearing the news about Kazu and was ready to storm into the operations room and make sure the response was appropriate. Tentomon had to calm him down and remind him that not only did he lack the authority to boss anyone around, nobody was going to be negligent enough to fail to mount a rescue. It was a strange sensation realizing he didn't have to deal with this.

Still, the loss was another blow to morale. One week in and it felt like everybody was already having second thoughts. As Izzy ate dinner with Matt and Nene, he heard all about the doubts they had about the direction this experiment was heading. It was unnerving and a little surreal to hear Nene, a fellow Fusion Fighter, question Mikey's ability to lead the group.

"He's as brilliant a tactician as you'll find, but I've come to wonder how moral he truly is."

Izzy nodded. "And I've always doubted Takuya's ability to manage a larger operation."

"Then why'd you come?" Matt asked.

"Same as you, really," Izzy said with a sigh. He hesitated for a moment, but staring at Matt long enough forced it out: "My relationship was leading to disaster..." His head dropped. "Even before the affair with Mimi."

Matt raised his eyebrows. "You and... Mimi?" Izzy nodded sadly. "That must have been..."

Keeping his voice measured and with only a slight blush, Izzy replied, "Besides it ruining my life, incredible."

Nodding, Nene grinned. "I can imagine. I'm not going to lie: I'm a little jealous."

"Excuse me?" Matt fired back, turning to her.

She patted his shoulder, her grin now wider. "You can be jealous too. It's okay."

"Izzy!" They heard Zoe rush into the dining area. Unlike the hall back home, the low ceiling made the shout impossible to ignore. The three looked up as she ran up to him, put her hands on his shoulders and panted, "I need you."

"My, Izzy, you're on fire!" Nene joked.

Zoe glanced at Nene and had to fight off a blush, but lowering her voice said, "They found Kazu but we need your help with something."

"Right now?" Izzy asked.

She nodded. "Mikey and Takuya are busy. We want this taken care of now."

"Shouldn't they should be aware of what's happening?" The frown on her face said otherwise. "Zoe, I have disagreements about the way they run things, but do you really think they'd..."

After a pause, Nene said, "It's not in Mikey's nature to leave anyone behind."

"After yesterday, I don't want to chance it. Takuya's..." Zoe shivered as she spoke. "I'm worried about him." She squeezed Izzy's shoulder. "Please. We just want this taken care of."

Izzy excused himself from the table and followed Zoe out. "Who's we?" he asked.

When Izzy arrived at the operations room, he found JP and Ryo. JP sat at the computer monitor. "We've got the coordinates. But we don't know how to get them from here..." He pointed at Ryo's D-Power. "...to there."

"We don't have time for red tape," Ryo explained. "We need to go now."

"Who's going?" Izzy stared at the coordinates. "If this is right, he's deep into uncharted territory. It's going to be dangerous."

Ryo tossed Izzy his D-Power as he stood up, clutching a bag. "Let me worry about that. Meet me in the courtyard when you're done."

With help from JP's tools, Izzy unscrewed the back of the D-Power to access the chip. Between the card reader and the projection display, it had always been his least favorite digivice to manipulate. The process of loading coordinates was more tricky than difficult, and he wasn't sure if they could be updated should Kazu ever move.

Zoe's anxious looks over his shoulder didn't help his concentration. "Why are you so worried about this?" he asked her. "And why aren't you getting proper clearance? Do you really believe Takuya would interfere with such a vital mission?"

"I don't know what Takuya's thinking anymore," Zoe replied, urgency in her voice. Izzy wasn't in a good position to turn around and look at her, but he could see JP, whose stare reflected both concern and anger. "It's just..."

As she trailed off, Izzy stopped and tried to catch a glimpse of her. Instead, JP barked, "C'mon, man, we gotta get this done." Izzy didn't appreciate the tone, but understood the point and finished the operation with no further questions.

They reached the courtyard just before Ryo and just after nightfall. When the tamer did arrive, he wasn't alone.

Rika folded her arms as they approached Izzy. "Let's make this clear- I'm not doing this because I'm friends with Kazu. He saved our butts out there and I'm not going to owe him any longer than I have to."

Ryo exaggerated a pumped fist. "Nice to see that Shinjuku pride. But look on the bright side- the two of us finally get some time alone!"

With a loud scoff, Rika said, "Yeah, not a chance. Already got that covered."

She glanced at Yushima walking behind them. "You're not really bringing the old man along?" Ryo asked. "Can't you just make Renamon keep you away from me?"

Yushima leaned in, smiling. "Marcus told me your plans. I appreciate the need for a rescue mission like this to go right." He looked up as Crowmon flew over the castle walls, landing in the courtyard. Keenan was on board. "So can Keenan," the commander-general added.

"Why walk when we can fly?" Rika said with a shrug. "At least as long as your partner's cooperating."

Ryo looked down at Monodramon, narrowing his eyes. "Yeah... why don't you stay in this form more often?"

"What? Why?" Monodramon smirked. "I'm a weakling compared to Cyberdramon. Can't wait to go back up!"

JP rushed in. "Well, hey, how about saving it for later? You guys should get going."

Izzy returned Ryo's D-Power. "This was his location as of a couple hours ago. We can't promise an update, but if we get one it'll be transferred automatically." Ryo nodded and hopped on Crowmon's back behind Keenan. His partner jumped on his lap. Rika sighed and climbed aboard behind Ryo, trying to find something to hold onto without resorting to his waist.

"Good luck!" JP shouted as Crowmon flapped his wings and took off into the night sky. He, Izzy and Zoe watched the three-legged bird soar over the wall, its black frame vanishing into the darkness.

Izzy was the last to look away, and only because JP asked, "Hey Z, what's wrong?" He hadn't noticed Zoe was in tears.

Neither did she, apparently. She wiped them, sniffed once and answered, "I don't know. They needed to go and they just... flew away."

"They'll be fine," Yushima said, still grinning. "If anybody can handle the wild unknown, it's Keenan."

Zoe shook her head as JP set a hand on her shoulder. "That's not it. It's just that things are getting so bad here and... and we can't go back. We're trapped. But they can just... fly away from here like that." She looked down. "I wish I could too."

JP removed his hand, throwing a nervous glance at Izzy. The Odaiba digidestined only bit his lip. JP took a deep breath and said, "Well... I mean if you really think things are this bad... don't forget- you can."

* * *

Kari Kamiya had her favorite hilltop to sit with Gatomon. It used to be a nightly routine, but she had lapsed a little when she was seeing Izzy. With him gone, she was quick to pick up the slack and devote herself to a partnership that wasn't as complicated.

"Same idea, huh?" TK's voice startled her. He and Patamon waved as they descended the hill, the human sitting with them, smiling. "Funny how that works." Kari flashed half a grin, facing forward and nodding.

"Gatomon!" Patamon exclaimed, bouncing in front of the feline. "Can I show TK what we've been working on?"

Kari's partner nodded back. "Of course." She jumped out of Kari's lap and ran to the bottom of the hill. Patamon flapped his wings and joined her.

TK smiled at them. "I'm still not used to nights being peaceful," he said to Kari. "And pretty. Was it always this pretty?"

She didn't answer. They had been pretty for as long as she could remember. The moons offered plenty of light- colored orbs contrasting the twinkling night sky like slowly gliding balloons. Still, it was the same sky she'd known for years.

"Watch me TK!" Patamon's shout drew their attention away. The Rookie waved at TK, then fired a Boom Bubble at Gatomon several yards away- at her outstretched paw to be specific. Gatomon timed a slash to disintegrate the attack. Then she held her paw at a new position and Patamon would aim for that. They repeated this several times from several positions. Each time, Patamon's accuracy was spot on.

"Looking good!" TK waved back. With a grin, he added, "At least they're still getting along."

Kari's head darted towards him. "W... what do you mean?"

He still didn't look at her. "I don't know. We're working together but it feels like we never just hang out and talk. You know, just us two. It's a little weird."

She looked away, scratching her arm. He was right; it was weird. She couldn't see him the same way while nothing had changed for him. It was an awkward stalemate that was going to have to end at some point. Since she could only hide her feelings so much, it was up to her to bring it out into the open.

Kari took a deep breath, turned to him and asked, "TK, are you in love with me?"

"Yeah," TK replied, staring forward, eyes still on Patamon.

Her body tensed as she waited for more. There had to be more, right? It wasn't a question to answer with one word, especially someone like TK who used words so fearlessly. But there wasn't. His smile faded, but he seemed more inclined to change the subject than elaborate.

"Is... is that all?" she asked. "You... don't have anything else to say?"

"Do I need to?" He faced her, half his smile returning. "Does it matter?"

"How can it not? I mean, of course I care about you, but-"

He held up a hand. "Nope. Nope, we're not doing all that. I never said I wanted to be together." When Kari only returned a blank stare, he said, "Kari, we're 14. There's no point getting involved with all that now."

"Well... we're going to be 14 for a long time."

"Right now, I'm okay with that." He stared up at one of the moons. "Look at what happened to our brothers. Matt... he ran away. He's on another continent now because of all that. Or... look at Koichi." He faced her again, eyebrows raised. "And I don't know what all happened between you and Izzy, but it sure feels like you two got in over your heads."

Kari nodded slowly. Her voice hushed, she replied, "You could say that."

"And me... I was just trying to help Suzie and we were dumb enough to end up with feelings for each other. That's all it was." He looked down. "I lost a friend over that. Knowing Cody, who knows how long it'll be before he talks to me again? It hurts." TK rose suddenly, looking Kari in the eyes. "I can't lose you like that. You mean too much to me."

"TK..." To her surprise, all the repulsion she had felt towards him was gone. His big secret was out now; her being important to him wasn't scary anymore. It was common knowledge. And once she set aside their other future and its reality that she would never have to experience, she knew it was reciprocated.

"I don't want to lose you either," she whispered.

He scooted next to her, close enough that she feared he'd threaten it all by taking her hand. "Then what's going on? It's like you've been... I don't know, scared of me or something. It's been weird since I got back. We see each other all the time but... I don't know... I miss you."

Missed her? He didn't have to put up with not knowing, and the fruitless searches, and all the times she acted like she was holding together while others cried longer and harder for their fallen friends. Was she so afraid the others would assume something? She still couldn't identify the feelings she had for him. She just knew they were strong, and they needed to escape.

Out of nowhere, the tears poured out and she drove herself into his chest, sobbing, "I missed you for nine years." With a faint smile, he rubbed her shoulder and patiently let her release it all. He knew it wouldn't take her long.

Once she finished, Kari pulled back, looked into his eyes and chuckled. "I'm glad you're back."

She sat up straight, her head leaning against his shoulder as they silently watched their Digimon play. Now that she looked at it again, TK was right- the night sky never looked so pretty.

* * *

Zoe Orimoto knocked on Takuya's door, her goal to leave with one of two possible things. When he answered with messy hair, red eyes and a sour expression, she was pretty sure which one it would be. It made her cringe. "What do you want?" he muttered.

"I want to come in." He let her, not moving as she sat down on the bed.

Takuya closed the door and waited for her to say something. When she didn't, he sat next to her and shook his head. "Did you know about those three that went after Kazu?"

She folded her hands in her lap. "I did."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"Takuya, you didn't want to ask Kari for help. Do you have any idea how bad that looked?" She looked at him, hands starting to shake. "You know... there are times that, even going back to the day we jumped on that train, that the only thing I could rely on was that I can trust you with my life." Her head fell. "After today, I don't know anymore."

"Zoe..." His mouth stayed open for a moment before he answered, "No... of course I want to save him. You think I wouldn't have let them go?" She didn't move. "But you talk about looking bad... telling Tai and them what we did... how does that not look bad?"

"That's not looking bad Takuya. That _is_ bad!" Zoe blurted. "You nearly got killed! All because of Mikey's stupid theory. What if he's wrong about that?"

Takuya grumbled, raising his voice. "Jeez, why are you here? These last couple days were the worst." He fell back on the bed, sitting on his elbows. "I was hoping you were here to cheer me up. Or at least explain why you're doing all this to me."

She almost snapped again, furious that he could be mad at her for expediting Kazu's rescue. But she held it in when she saw his face. The fire was gone. His stare was blank and aimless, drained of all its confidence. Even in the most dire moments of their first adventure, she couldn't remember him looking so vulnerable.

Zoe fell onto her side, facing him as she said, "I don't feel safe here. I'm scared of what's going to happen. How do we know it's going to get better? I just want you to know how I feel."

He glanced at her once, long enough to take in the concern on her face, before looking up at the ceiling again. Then he sat up and mumbled, "Nah..." When he turned to her again, the Takuya she knew had been restored. "It's just a rough start. That's all. Ryo and them will get Kazu back, and we'll figure out a better way to go after these creator guys." He grinned. "And hey, so what if Tai and them know what we're doing? It's done. Why worry about what they think? Just makes it more fun when we prove them wrong."

She stared back, biting her lip and letting out an annoyed moan. "Takuya..."

"I just need to sleep it off. Things will be better tomorrow." He kept staring at her, then looked her up and down. "I suppose you don't want to... stay here?" he asked, brushing his hand across her leg.

Zoe closed her eyes, taking in his touch. No matter how frustrated she may have been with him, nothing had changed. "I... I do," she answered.

His gaze darted back to her face. "What? You do?" It wasn't excitement. He was stunned, or even grateful.

She sat up just enough to take his hand. "I won't feel better about this in the morning, but... let's just forget about everything for tonight. I just want you to hold me... and kiss me... and let's get lost in each other for as long as we can."

Takuya didn't need to say any more. He fell on her and went straight for her neck. Her head tilted back as she welcomed all the pleasures that would smother her fears for the night. She hoped they would pour in forever.

Of course, they couldn't. They tried though, clutching each other for hours, each desperate to forget their mistakes and shaken confidence. They ignored how much the other was at fault. Zoe could find peace in Takuya's arms, even if he was the one who took it away to begin with. For as long as they were together, she could only see tranquility and a love for her hero free of pain and doubt. But even he could go only go so far into the night.

She had outlasted him, stroking his hair as he slept. After all of that, nothing would wake him. They had reached new heights in a night she would never forget. Even more perfect was his content, pleased face as he undoubtedly dreamed of her. This was the memory of Takuya Kanbara she wanted to take with her. It would be a long time before he spoke to her again.

Careful not to wake him, Zoe got out of bed, gathered her clothes strewn around the room, dressed, and approached the nightstand. Her goal had been to leave with one of two things. One was the comfort of Takuya learning from his errors to steer Isthmian Castle in a more sensible direction. Now certain that was impossible, she seized the second- the one living in the black and red D-Tector she now held in her hand. After a few button presses, it jumped into her pocket.

Zoe sighed, confirmed the acquisition with her own D-Tector, then sent a message. She bent over, kissed Takuya on the temple, and hustled out of the room.

In her room, her bag was already prepared. By the time she got to the courtyard, her accomplices were present.

"So you're really doing this?" JP asked, smiling in disbelief.

She walked up to him and nodded. "I can't see things getting better. And I can't spend the next few weeks worrying if we'll be all right or second guessing him. I know I probably can't make things right with Jeremy, but I'll be happier back there either way."

He eyed the D-Tector in her hands. "And you're really going to..."

With a shudder, she said, "I need to do this. I'm sure it'll be fine."

"I'll be pulling for you, Z." Zoe smiled and embraced him, lingering in his arms a few moments longer than she needed to.

Tommy had a bag of his own. "Made some snacks for your trip. We're gonna miss you, you know." Zoe hugged him too, taking his bag and adding it to hers.

The third boy was more confused. "Why did you want me here?" asked Izzy.

She stood in front of him, wearing a sad smile. "I've spent the last few years doubting you and your friends. I didn't think you were trying hard enough and I said awful things behind your back. You and Kari and Tai should all hate me. But when it went wrong and I needed your help, you didn't throw any of that back in my face. You just helped." She set a hand on his shoulder. "I appreciate that."

Izzy shook for a moment, blushing slightly at the contact. Coughing to recover, he declared, "We're farther away than you realize, so don't plan to make the trip without stopping. Make sure to rest. Following the train track is your best option. It isn't the shortest route but it's the best way to avoid getting lost. I wish I could estimate your travel time-"

She pulled him in, patting his back as he squirmed. After she let him go he couldn't make eye contact. Zoe smiled and moved into position.

The pool in front of her was calm, reflecting the night sky. Zoe leaned over it to see herself- her human form, guilty of too many mistakes to name and filled with too much doubt to continue. She needed a change, even if it was meant doing what was once unthinkable. For years her Digimon forms carried nothing but pain. Now, as her human self began to feel the same poison, they were her only path of escape. She was diving in, refusing even to ease back into it. There was no sense being cautious now.

"Execute! Beast Spirit Evolution!"

* * *

Rika Nonaka didn't think about having to work with Ryo on this mission until the first night set in. Until then, it was business. Besides, the two had been together on Takuya's exploration team and she tolerated his joking the way she always did. It was only after Crowmon landed and they found shelter for the night that she grew disgusted at the prospect of being mostly alone with him. Keenan insisted on a night shift, accompanied by Renamon and Monodramon in order to let Falcomon rest. This left Rika and Ryo curled up in sleeping bags at the end of a small cave.

"How about whoever's least asleep when Keenan comes back in takes the second shift?" Ryo suggested.

"You're on," she answered with too much bluster. She realized she was probably losing that.

"Cool... night, dear."

She braced herself for whatever he was going to say next. Surely he wouldn't pass up the opportunity to suggest something tawdry, even as a joke. When he stayed silent, she snickered, "That's it? You must be losing your touch if that's as far as you're taking it."

"Hey, if you want to cuddle, you're free to crawl in here. But I'll behave," he said. "After all, you're in a deep, committed relationship... with someone a thousand miles away you have no way to contact."

The sarcasm in his voice stung. She thought about firing back, but all she could think up were petty responses. His words cut too deep for that.

Instead of waiting for her return volley, he asked, "So, has Ken made up any more alternate universe fanfiction about me?"

She rolled over in her bag and smiled at him. "You know what Ken and I like to talk about when we're alone?"

He grinned back, raising an eyebrow. It fell when she answered, "Anything but you."

Still, his smile remained. "Then why are you here?" he asked.

She grunted. "You think I want to be here? We have a job to do."

"Yeah right," Ryo replied, scoffing. "You're not buying any of Takuya's crap. You could be safe in your emperor's arms right now, but instead you're stuck in a cave with me and Tarzan. That tells me you're either miserable right now and pretending it doesn't bug you or you weren't really that happy being with Ken."

Rika rolled around to hide the pout on her face. For all of his terrible flirting, both sincere and mocking, this was why she really hated being around Ryo. "What about you?" she snapped back. "You think Takuya's full of it too."

"Sure, but it's not like I'm in love with Tai either. I'm not Takato. For some reason Tai and them never sat right with me. I don't know why." He exhaled. "So whatever. I don't mind changing it up because I don't care. There's no one for me back home!"

She almost responded, but held back. She couldn't tell if he was baiting her into sentiment or he had accidentally dropped a moment of sincere loneliness. Either way, it worked on her and she felt worse and worse with every second of silence that followed.

"That's what I don't get about you," he finally said. "Against all odds, you actually find somebody who's willing to put up with you. I never thought it was possible. Hell, I wasn't convinced you even swung that way. But you pull it off and... you run. You throw it away. Why?"

Rika curled up in her sleeping bag, cursing Ryo for pushing the subject. She could have fed him her usual lines about being a fighter and her sense of duty compelling her here. But she wasn't sure she believed it anymore. Not after Ornismon, a fight so dangerous and pointless that it became clear to her that even the front line wasn't going anywhere meaningful. She and Marcus were there to keep Takuya alive, upright and hopefully on the right track, but why was she so adamant that this was their job? And how good was she at it if Kazu did the real work? She still thought of herself as a fighter, but one who was getting really sick of fighting.

"Rika?" The snark in Ryo's voice was gone. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Why did I make myself come here?" she asked herself, her voice hushed.

"Because you're an idiot who's too afraid to let anyone get too close to you." Her body shook, trying very hard to ignore him. "Hey, this is the part where you snap at me," he added. "You know, you may not like it, but we actually do care about you. One of these days you might let us."

"I just..." No... she wasn't going to say she wanted to go home. She did... she very much did. She just couldn't say it to Ryo. Instead, she answered, "I just want to get some sleep. The sooner I do, the sooner it'll be morning and the sooner we can find Kazu and leave." She had to catch her breath after all that lying.

"'kay," Ryo replied. He sounded disappointed, but that seemed to be the end of it. Sadly, she had too much in her head to actually fall asleep.

A minute later when he said, "But that offer to cuddle still stands." This time, she knew he was serious. This time, the thought of how much she wanted to made her shiver.

* * *

Yolei Inoue found a whole new reason to hate herself. Years later, at the worst time she could imagine, she once again had grown feelings for Ken Ichijouji. It was the only way to explain the dream she had. It jolted her awake early in the morning and she didn't dare try to go back to bed to conclude it. She woke, dressed, hopped around in pain after stepping on a wire straying from Terriermech, and headed downstairs for a walk.

Of course he was outside too. It was still dark, but she found Ken sitting on a bench in silence, Wormmon perched on his shoulder. She wanted to run away before he saw her. After their moment on the beach, all she could envision was how perfect it would have been- two unhappy people reconnecting and realizing they were all they needed the whole time. She saw Ken as the forever option. Once she left him because she wasn't ready for forever. Now the idea was growing on her.

Pursuing it would have made her a terrible person. But she couldn't just leave him like this. Letting Ken Ichijouji stew in his own negative emotions was dangerous. With a deep sigh, she sat next to him. Probably too close, but it was too late to back away. Instead, she asked, "Couldn't sleep either?" She wanted to put a hand on his shoulder, but held back. Even so, Wormmon shot her a look before jumping off and scampering away.

"I talked to Kari last night," he said. "A data stream got Kazu."

Yolei gasped. She knew as well as anyone how scary those were. But once overcoming the shock, she narrowed an eye. "Wait... you couldn't sleep because you're worried about _Kazu_?"

He shook his head. "Rika's going out to rescue him. She left last night with Ryo."

She returned an understanding nod. "Don't worry. Ryo's all talk. You'll be fine."

Ken looked up, facing her for the first time with one eye narrowed. "No... I know how Ryo feels about me but I have faith in him. But they're venturing somewhere none of us have ever explored. Who knows what they'll run into?"

"They'll be fine. They know how to take care of themselves."

"Still... you were right. I should have done more to convince her to stay. She wouldn't be forced to do all this."

"I'm sure she wasn't forced. You can't force her to do anything."

Ken looked away, up to the sky. "Yolei, she's not going to abandon Kazu. He's part of her group. At least if she was here she wouldn't have to put herself out there like this."

"But..." Yolei sighed. "You can't kick yourself for letting her go. Like you said, you probably couldn't have convinced her anyway."

"I don't know anymore. She refuses to let on that she's doubting herself. And she wanted me to fight back. She wanted me to argue, maybe even lose my temper." He leaned forward, his hands clutching the end of the bench. "What if she felt like she was supposed to go? What if she was looking for an excuse not to? I could have stopped her." He choked up. "I think I was supposed to stop her. Why didn't I?"

"Because that's what's so great about you," Yolei mumbled, hands fidgeting in her lap. "You want what you think is best for everyone else, even if it's not best for you. She told you she thought she should go and you believed her. Maybe you believed her more than she believed herself. You're a kind, selfless person who wants to see others happy and others succeeding. I mean, that's why I love you, so..."

She trailed off, knowing right away she had said it and how bad a mistake it was. She didn't stammer or jolt to catch his reaction or show any sign of shock. Why would she be surprised she said something so stupid?

As expected, Ken was staring back at her once she dared to check. "Don't look so shocked," she muttered. Leaning in, she whispered, "Times like these and with the way we screwed up with other people... makes me think I shouldn't have let you go."

For all her awareness in how she felt or what she said, she didn't notice how she kept easing forward. Or the way Ken did too. Yolei didn't even realize her lips were pursing until she felt Ken's pressed against them. They opened enough to envelop his, and he returned the gesture. She pulled her mouth away, but he surged forward, catching her in a deeper, stronger kiss. She closed her eyes, savoring it, wishing for it to lead to more.

When he paused for a breath, she mumbled, "What are you doing?"

"It's over anyway. I won't see her again." The air from each word tickled her lips. "Maybe it would just be easier to-"

"Don't say that," Yolei interrupted. "You can't give up. You have to stick it out."

"So... so no, then?" Ken leaned back, staring into her eyes. They pleaded with her.

"Ken... I can't say no to you." She shook her head. Louder, she added, "But I don't get any of this right. I screwed up with you. I screwed up with Henry. Don't get me started on Mikey. I know you're just having a moment of weakness, but you're about to make a mistake... and I'm about to let you."

He still stared at her, his head wavering back and forth. Yolei waited. He had the green light and it was up to him what he'd do with it. As loud as her warning that he would be screwing up by moving forward, she was disappointed when he didn't.

"You're right..." His head fell. "This isn't the answer. Even if I was wrong to let her go, it isn't an excuse to make another mistake. We can beat this, right?"

Her eyes closed. "Of course you can," she mumbled.

"Thanks." He kissed her forehead. "You may not realize it, but you always seem to know what to say to me. I think that's why I love you." Her eyes jolted open to see his smile. Now he was at a respectful distance. He stood and ran off to find Wormmon.

Yolei sat back, still ashamed of her feelings and how close she came to acting on them. The dawn came quickly, blinding her momentarily as the Digital World sky suddenly turned to day. Suddenly it was brighter and warmer. It didn't heal anything; nothing was instantly better. Maybe an affair with Ken would have, at least until the guilt set in and word got out. In spite of all this, she still caught herself smiling. She may not have made the right choices, but at least she was able to steer everything to the right outcome. That, at least, was an improvement.

* * *

Zephyrmon forgot how incredible flying felt. She expected more difficulty doing it again after years on the ground. There were extra nerve endings to manipulate, almost like having two more limbs to wrap her head around. Everything came back to her like she had done it yesterday. She indulged in a few midair acrobatics just to feel the rush again.

She didn't even have a problem controlling her beast spirit. Not that she ever did; it might have been the only thing she did better than the boys. But years of refusing to evolve raised doubts and she couldn't be confident about it. She only chose Zephyrmon's form because there was less of a stigma: she was Kazemon during the ambush that nearly killed her. All the nightmares and episodes that ensued starred Kazemon and while it kept Zoe from evolving at all, her preference once she finally felt the need to was clear. Now that she was in the air and soaring again, she was all too happy to assume this form going forward, even if her human spirit remained a dicey prospect.

After hours of flying, she heeded Izzy's advice and stopped for a rest. She didn't know how far she had left, but the tunnel up ahead seemed like a good place for a break. Zephyrmon followed the track through the mountain. Once it opened up to the hidden cave, she grinned, admitting to herself that she secretly wanted to see this place. She may not have gotten as many of the details as Tai or Thomas, but the stories from them and the patrol team fascinated her. She reverted back to her human form and unhooked the pack strapped to her leg. Zoe leaned back against the dead vegetation and marveled at the place while eating one of Tommy's sandwiches.

Zoe knew exploring it alone was a bad idea, and she was in too much of a hurry to sight-see. It was exhilarating enough just to see Algomon's lair in person. All the plantlife she had heard about was dead, with brown vines clumped across the ground. They still covered the pyramid in the distance, among other piles likely relocated while Dorulumon and Digmon drilled the tunnels. She knew the sort of strife that once originated from here. Now it felt lifeless.

Well, almost. Zoe felt the slightest brush against her waist and jolted upright. She couldn't see anything among the sickly branches and hanging vines, but now she could imagine what sorts of bugs could be living in there. Her appetite suddenly gone, she bagged the rest of her sandwich and brushed her back, hoping not to find any passengers.

It didn't take much for all the novelty of the cave to vanish. Now it looked like death, lit by some eerie pale green light with no origin point. The dry air was cold and had a sickly smell to it. It wasn't even as silent as she thought: once she focused on it, she swore she could hear something slinking along the rocky ground. She needed to leave.

She motioned for her pack, but froze when she saw the vine creeping over it. It was as dead as all the others, dry and brown yet moving on its own. Moving towards her. Zoe backed away nervously, wondering if she could make the rest of the trip with no supplies, a trembling hand clutching at her D-Tector. She didn't notice the other vine until it wrapped around her ankle, tightened its grip, and yanked her off her feet. Her D-Tector fell to the ground; the vine pulled her away before she could reclaim it.

A second vine wrapped around her other leg, dragging her along the rocky ground even faster. Every bump along the way stung and scratched her, but she couldn't clutch at anything to stall the inevitable. Her legs, and soon her whole body, became heavier as her muscles eased in spite of the situation. Zoe screamed, but the vines neither stopped their course nor muffled her. It didn't matter; nobody could hear her. Wherever these vines came from, nothing would stop them from pulling her towards the pyramid.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 23: "If I"**  
A surprise attack on Isthmian Castle catches Takuya and Mikey off guard. Nene's struggles in battle drives a wedge between her and Matt. Yoshi attempts to guide Takato through his crisis.

 _"I know I let you down. I know it has to hurt. But I will make it right."_

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
For all of the little quirks of the world like the data streams from Tamers, the moons from Frontier and the digibytes from Fusion, it's fun to throw in something from Adventure like the tree hideout.

Barbamon is one of the Seven Great Demon Lords and the main antagonist in the Next manga. He won't feature here much, but gives you an idea of the sort of stuff running loose on the unexplored continent.

Mikey looking increasingly sick as Takuya gives him every reason not to help Kazu is a byproduct of the dub playing down the ramifications of his failure to help that soccer kid. Since that kid was barely harmed at all by Mikey's negligence, the fact that Mikey was still so deeply affected by it suggests less that he has a big heart and more that he's not totally healthy. Even when a sacrifice would be strategically necessary (not that this case applies), Mikey is mentally incapable of considering it as an option and trying to do so breaks him.

Thomas's line about Izzy's need to have data backups for everybody is a reference to the most recent tri. movie. Since the Adventure kids entered this world somewhere around August 2005 (this had been the plan even before tri. entered the picture), I originally thought that was between the first and second movies, but now it appears to be during the third. We're going to lock that in.

Even though Ryo doesn't remember his adventures with Ken (and is leery of Ken for suggesting they happened), his line about not trusting Tai refers to events from the Wonderswan games... but doesn't automatically suggest that they actually happened. Given the problems some of those cause to the timeline, we're leaving it vague whether it's reality or, as Ryo calls it, alternate universe fanfiction.

uFWsbe-lnKE  
B008W6J5RI


	24. 23- If I

**Neverworld**

 **Author's Note**  
Okay, home stretch! No promises that I'll actually be able to do all this, but I'm hoping to finish writing the last two chapters as I post the final four. Fingers crossed!

 _If I, if I, if I had only known_  
 _that I would be a lamb to the slaughter. Now I know._  
 _If I, if I, if I had only known,_  
 _and known the pain, it only makes me stronger. Now I know._  
 _\- Flobots, "If I"_

 **Episode 23**

Zoe Orimoto didn't remember when or how she lost consciousness. Regaining it felt like a chore. Her muscles refused to cooperate, weighing heavy and making any effort at motion slow and deliberate. Even opening her eyelids made her want to go back to sleep. She forced herself to only because she knew she was in serious trouble and had to know how much.

She knew right away she was in the central chamber of the pyramid. The green light was uncomfortable and stung her eyes. But the first time she tried to blink, her eyes almost didn't open again. Turning her head was hard, but she could tell she was in some sort of tube, but she wasn't actually restrained. Had her muscles been fully working, she would have had no trouble jumping out and running. Of course, given her company, she knew that was a bad idea, even if it were possible.

For all the reports she had overheard and pictures she saw peering over Thomas's shoulder, Algomon looked far scarier in person. He was larger than she imagined, his back covered in the same decaying brown vines that had nabbed her. He didn't have feet so much as intertwined roots, each one brittle and tan and ready to snap and crumble, but together enough to support his massive upper body. His skin was pale, his eyes cloudy and white. The vines were the only moving part of his body.

She thought he was watching her, but it was hard to tell without pupils in his eyes. He didn't speak, which Zoe found odd knowing how annoyed the patrol team had been about his rambling. Even if it was something troubling, she'd rather have him talking. At least that way she could figure out where this was going, why she was still alive, and if she had any hope of keeping it that way.

Staying alive was her last clear thought before she felt the vibrations rattle through her head. They rang through her brain like a migraine, nearly shutting it down. She screamed, unable to lift her arms and clutch her head and still refusing to close her eyes. Instead they rolled back. When the ringing didn't stop, losing consciousness was more and more tempting.

"How dare another human set foot inside the sanctuary of his worship?" Zoe couldn't tell if she was actually hearing the voice or it had invaded her mind through the vibrations. A black figure had obstructed her sight, but she couldn't see clearly enough to shape it. A giant insect, perhaps?

"Look what you have done to him! You don't know what it took to restore him even to this sad state. Yet even in death he triumphs over you! So it shall be for all of mankind."

"What are you going to do to me?!" she yelled, rushing her voice to get it out in one breath. Anything more would have been too taxing.

"It depends on if you cooperate," it replied. "In your last trespass you stole valuables of his."

"Stole?!" She took a deep breath. "I don't know what you're talking about. We didn't take anything, we only-" Zoe stopped. Did it mean...?

"Prisoners. And the humans they call their masters. Where are they?!"

"I'm not telling you!" The vibrations increased, overwhelming all her thoughts and prompting another uncontrollable scream. The pain was unbearable. "No! Stop!" she cried.

It ceased instantly. "Tell us where you took them!" Tears still streamed down, but she could gather her thoughts again. The first one, a small one from a forgotten corner of her mind, compelled her to answer. She could dismiss it at first, but she knew what was in store if she continued to refuse. Zoe had to say something if she had any hope of staying alive.

If they were after Gabumon and Patamon, this was both a problem and an opportunity. The two were in separate castles hundreds of miles apart. These enemies didn't need to know that. If their intent was to attack, there was no way they could sneak up on one without the other learning about it.

With a heavy gulp, she answered, "The castle north of here. On the edge of the other continent." For all the doubts she had about Takuya and Mikey, she trusted them in a fight more. And she wasn't about to send these monsters after Kari and Jeremy.

The black Digimon backed away from her. Now she could clearly make it out. It was an insect, closest to a beetle, with a glossy black body. It hovered in midair in front of Algomon for a moment before flying away. Zoe suddenly felt a clear gel filling the tube. She felt her limbs go numb, then her shoulders, then her torso. Soon she didn't feel anything at all. This time she had no power to keep her eyes from closing.

* * *

Thomas Norstein was never one for hyperbole. His statements were measured, careful never to lead anyone to rush to a conclusion. That way, when something was truly important, everyone would know he wasn't exaggerating. As a result, the overnight data left him at a loss. A storm of activity representing some powerful Digimon emerged from the mountain that had housed Algomon. They had left the radar's range so were surely not drawing nearer, but Thomas couldn't rule out the possibility of an attack on Isthmian.

He wasn't going to make any decisions without consulting the other officers. But as usual, he was the first one upstairs with no idea when the other four would trickle in. If a dangerous attack was imminent and they absolutely had to lend a hand, Thomas wouldn't have hesitated sounding an alarm. But he didn't know if these Digimon were hostile, or if they were actually approaching Isthmian, or if Isthmian wasn't strong enough to handle the threat themselves. An alarm, even one meant only for the officers, would scare everyone. After some deliberation, Thomas called it anyway: if they agreed there was action to be taken, they needed to take it immediately.

Barely a minute later, Tai and a groggy Davis stepped off the elevator, the latter with his shirt untucked and carrying his suit, tie and goggles under his arm. "What's going on?" Tai asked, running up to Thomas's station.

Thomas handed him the sheets of data. "I'll explain once Kari and Henry get here, but see for yourself."

Tai flipped through the pages, squinting at the hard numbers. "Um... yeah, we should, uh... send out the response team?"

"Good try."

Kari took the stairs, running in on bare feet, carrying her shoes. "I'm sorry. What's wrong?"

"You know, Henry's still in Leo so he might be a bit," said Davis.

Thomas nodded and stood, taking the report from Tai and giving it to Davis. "Pull up the coordinates on that page and see if you can identify the Digimon around that area overnight." Davis nodded and went to work as Thomas announced, "A number of dangerously powerful Digimon were picked up last night. They were on the move. We don't know if they're malicious or corrupted, but-"

"Are they heading towards us?" Tai asked.

Thomas shook his head. "Away, but possibly towards Isthmian."

Tai winced. "Well, we should warn them. But they'll take care of it, right?"

"I don't know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?! It's Takuya's group, Marcus and all the Fusion Fighters! Why wouldn't they handle it?"

"I think you answered your own question," Davis mumbled.

"I'm serious! They're probably stronger than we are right now."

"I don't know, Tai, they sound pretty disorganized," Kari said, frowning at him.

Tai stared back. He couldn't tell if she was being pessimistic, contrarian, or if she had picked up on something he couldn't.

Out of nowhere, Davis whined, "Hey Norstein, it's broken."

Thomas furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Davis's monitor. The gogglehead explained, "The only one it could identify was Algomon. Isn't he dead?"

"Move." Thomas leaned in and started typing on Davis's keyboard. "You must have inputted something incorrectly because..." He froze. His input produced the same thing. "That can't be right."

"How can he be alive again?" Tai asked. "The river hasn't gotten any better and Primary Village is still down. If he's back, shouldn't the world stop having a hissy fit?"

"Maybe he just hatched out of a digiegg," Kari suggested.

"Turning into a digiegg preserves his data," Thomas answered. "That wouldn't destabilize the world." Finally Henry rushed out of the elevator. Thomas turned to him and asked, "Henry, may I see your D-Power?"

"Sure, what's going on?" Henry handed it over and watched Thomas pull data off it.

"Your old friend Algomon seems to be back. With friends. And possibly attacking Isthmian."

"Well, that's not the end of the world. It was a rough fight but we were able to handle it. I'm sure Marcus and Takuya would be fine."

Thomas shook his head as the D-Power confirmed the database readings. He returned it, mumbling, "Hard to say."

Tai fell into his seat. "Well, think you can do all that math to figure out their odds?"

After staring at Davis's screen and double checking the reports, Thomas worked some equations on a notepad. The other four waited. "Based on the amount of data they're bringing to the fight and assuming Isthmian is on alert... the odds of Takuya's team defending themselves is roughly 75 percent."

Davis scoffed. "Where's the drama in that?"

"That's two coin flips. If it's tails both times, depending on Algomon's intentions they're facing a total loss."

"He sure wasn't a big fan of humans, or the Digimon siding with them," Henry said.

"Oh no!" Kari's eyes widened at her screen. "I couldn't get a message through. The connection's been broken."

"So what do we do?!" Henry exclaimed. "We can't all fly out there and help them! Can we?" Thomas shook his head.

"Stupid Takuya!" Davis shouted. "This is what we were afraid of! If we were all together..."

Tai shook him off. "Can we get over there in time?"

"We don't know how much time we have," Thomas said. "We certainly can't get to Isthmian first without running into Algomon along the way. And what if something heads here?"

"What about the patrol team? Can they swoop in?"

Thomas did some typing, then frowned. "I doubt they can arrive in time for the start of a battle, but they might be able to make an impact if it's a prolonged fight."

"Kari, send them," Tai declared. Kari nodded and started typing.

"I seriously doubt they would make a big enough impact. Three percent, maybe?"

"I know..." Tai sighed, slumping in his chair. "In the end, we just have to hope Takuya's got his act together enough to pull through. We have to trust them. There's no other choice."

"Then why bother sending Cody and Takato?" Davis asked.

Tai closed his eyes. "Because if things don't go right, we won't be able to live with ourselves if we did nothing."

* * *

Christopher Aonuma rushed into the operations room, relieved to find Takuya and Mikey already hovering over the radar. "I hope you know what's creeping up on us?" he asked them.

"You saw them?" Takuya asked, still trying to navigate the computer.

"MailBirdramon did while I was on a digibyte run. Too far away to ID but there's a lot of them and they're heading this way. Doesn't your radar tell you what we're looking at?"

"Maybe it could if I could read it."

"Where's Zoe?" Mikey asked.

"Don't know. She wasn't in bed yesterday morning."

"That's a window into your life I didn't need," Christopher muttered.

Mikey leaned in. "Wait, Zoe was gone all day yesterday?"

"No, I just didn't see her." Takuya shrugged. "Jeez, just because we're sometimes a thing doesn't mean I have to keep track of her all the time."

Christopher folded his arms. "At least you should notice if she disappears completely."

Takuya rolled his eyes and pulled out his D-Tector. "Fine, I'll message her to see what's going on. How do we deal with these attackers?"

Mikey mashed an alarm by the computer. " We play defense. Everyone outside."

Everyone in the castle did meet them out in the courtyard, but Takuya wasn't happy about it. When they all left on the Trailmon, he thought they had numbers to spare. Now besides him there were only ten other humans and four realized Digimon. That felt paltry.

Furthermore, it confirmed Mikey's observation. "Where's Zoe?" Takuya asked, feeling his stomach churn.

"She uh..." JP fidgeted. "...she kinda took off and went back home."

"She what?! How?! Why didn't you-"

Christopher coughed. "That's the least of our problems right now." With Takuya silenced, he faced the group. "We might be under attack."

There was some trepidation in the group, but not much. Marcus even grinned. Mikey tapped his goggles and announced, "Okay guys, I think I know how to tackle this. First off- Nene, send JetMervamon out to see if they're really planning to attack."

Nene recoiled. "And how's she supposed to do that?"

"Uh... fly out there and see they attack her?"

She cringed. "J... just her?"

"She's tough enough to take care of herself and fast enough to get back home."

"You're missing the point!" Matt shouted.

"Matt..." Nene sighed, then pulled out her Fusion Loader. "Mervamon! Sparrowmon! Digifuse!" JetMervamon received her orders and blasted over the wall towards the enemy.

Mikey delivered a few preliminary instructions and everyone split up to take positions and begin preparations. Matt at least waited that long before confronting him again. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? Sending Nene's partner out alone against an attacking army?"

"Yeah, that's why I sent JetMervamon," Mikey said, scanning some papers. "What, Tai never sent anyone out ahead like that?"

"Not to draw an attack! If he did it was his own partner!"

"Matt, it's okay," Nene set a hand on his shoulder. "We need to get through this first." She pulled him away from Mikey, creating enough space to defuse any further hostility. Still, she found herself glaring at the general from a distance too.

"But thank you," she mumbled, kissing Matt on the cheek.

Matt was supposed to join Gabumon on the castle wall, providing fire hoping to deter anyone flying overhead. Instead he stayed with Nene, waiting for JetMervamon to return.

Christopher shook his head at them. "Jeez, it's JetMervamon. She'll be fine," he muttered.

JetMervamon, engines smoking, glided over the castle wall and crashed into the courtyard pool, instantly defusing. Both Mervamon and Sparrowmon floated to the surface in a daze, their bodies pocked with scrapes and bites.

"Yep, they're attacking!" Mervamon mumbled.

Nene rushed up to them, but before she could say anything to them, Mikey shouted, "Okay, Takuya, Koji- once we have visual, you're next." He turned to Nene. "Nene, get them in your Fusion Loader. They need to heal up; we may need Sparrowmon later." She wanted to respond, but could barely breathe after all that.

"Unity Execute! Unified Spirit Evolution!" At first, nobody paid much attention to Takuya spirit evolving. They did once he fell over screaming, clutching his back with his entire form blurring and dissolving. As a crowd gathered, he managed to clutch his D-Tector through his convulsions and press a button, stabilizing himself as Takuya again and relieving the pain. He stayed on the ground to catch his breath.

"The hell was that?" Christopher asked.

On his knees, Takuya flipped through his D-Tector, already shaking his head. He already knew what he was going to find: "Zoe took her spirits."

Mikey narrowed an eyebrow. "What's Zoe got to do with why you can't digivolve?"

"It's called _Unified_ Spirit Evolution!" Takuya rose to his feet. "I combine our spirits to get more power. It's basically the same thing you do!"

With a huff, Mikey turned to Takuya's teammate, now fully evolved. "Well, at least MagnaGarurumon is good to go."

"That's a Garurumon?" Matt mumbled.

Ignoring him, Mikey said, "Koji, hold off until we figure out who you're flying with." He looked around; Takuya was already gone.

He ran downstairs to the operations room. JP and Tommy were watching the radar as Takuya burst in and asked, "Okay guys, what the hell happened with Zoe?"

They didn't respond at first. Takuya insisted: "She stole her spirits from me!"

JP pushed off the console and spun around. "Those are hers! She was fed up with this place, so she took them and left."

"What do you mean she was fed up? She..." Takuya stopped. Assessing their last conversation... no, she had said she felt unsafe and afraid. That was close enough.

"Takuya, how long has it been since she's spirit evolved? That's how strongly she felt about this."

"Well, that's great, but without those spirits I'm not as strong now. We might be in real trouble!"

Tommy turned around. "Okay but... they're gone. She's gone. What are we supposed to do?"

Takuya took a deep breath and held his D-Tector towards Tommy. "Tommy, you're in."

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda could tell Sunflowmon was running out of gas. Cursing to herself, she ordered her partner to land and rest. They were still hours away from Isthmian. The patrol team had never prioritized rapid mobilization. She hoped both castles understood that.

As Lalamon drank some water from a pond and tried to nap off the exhaustion, the rest of the party huddled over a map.

"We're still not close, are we?" Cody asked.

"We'll be lucky if anyone's still fighting by the time we get there," Yoshi complained. "Or unlucky I guess. Last thing I feel like doing is bailing Takuya out of whatever mess he got them all in."

"Oh, I've bailed Takuya out lots of times," Takato said, earning a nod from Cody. "Just didn't sound this scary."

Yoshi returned a grave nod. "This is bad."

"This isn't the worst?" Armadillomon asked her, adding a grin.

"Gonna be a while before anything beats that Raremon swamp. Besides, for all we know they'll win easily and this'll all be for nothing."

"Better that than the alternatives," Cody said. He and Takato fell silent as they pondered the alternatives. Command had stressed urgency and while Kari would never say it out loud, the team sensed a real possibility of Isthmian falling.

Seeing their faces go cold, Yoshi shouted, "Hey! Don't think about stuff like that! Focus on what we need to do." Frowning, she turned to Lalamon, still asleep.

"Sorry. It's just weird feeling this helpless while our friends are in trouble," said Takato. "Imagine how bad it would be if the attack was back home."

"Yeah, that would be even worse."

"I mean, some don't even have Digimon to protect them, like..." he caught himself before saying her name.

Yoshi smirked. "All that and you still care."

After a hum of disapproval, Takato replied, "Well yeah, of course I do. I'd do anything for her."

"Like commit felony assault."

He glared back, but said, "I just don't know if anyone cares about me." Guilmon nudged his shoulder in consolation.

"Koichi does," Cody said, drawing looks from the whole group.

"The guy who's been sneaking off with Jeri for the last six months cares about me... you're gonna have to elaborate there."

"He told you about it. He didn't have to. If they were together that long, why else would he do it other than to come clean?"

Takato looked away. "Well, fine, but what does it mean that Jeri was willing to hide it then?"

"She probably guessed how you'd react," Yoshi answered. "If she really liked him better she'd just dump you."

"It would make things less complicated."

"You wouldn't feel any better," Cody muttered.

Yoshi pointed to Cody. "Hey, we already talked about that. Suzie was right and all three of you were stupid." She turned back to Takato. "All I'm saying is Jeri didn't ditch you even though all that was happening." With a huff, she added, "You two care about each other and Koichi cares about both of you."

"And before all this happened I really liked Koichi. That's what makes this so hard." Takato sighed. "I just wish we could go back to the way it was before."

"Before the cheating or before you knew about it?"

Takato paused. It was a simple question, but he didn't know the answer.

"Okay, I should be ready to go," Lalamon said, floating in. Yoshi jumped up and urged her teammates to rush. With Sunflowmon back in business, Takato and Guilmon leaped into her left palm as she again sped towards Isthmian. The question was still on his mind.

* * *

Izzy Izumi stood atop the castle wall, supervising the small team firing at the horde of Flybeemon flying over the cliff towards the castle. Tentomon and Gabumon tried to pick off as many as they could, ready to digivolve instantly should the attackers get too close and more firepower became necessary. The real punch came from Kumamon, whose Blizzard Blaster attack proved to be perfect cover fire, demanding the entire swarm to tread carefully.

As the Flybeemon tried to advance, Izzy found their movement patterns peculiar. For one, they were more coordinated than most enemy armies- organized units diving, evading and advancing in perfect unison. They were well drilled, and yet dumb. They weaved through the air to make themselves harder targets, and avoided Kumamon's rapid fire as much as they could, but they did nothing to dodge simple attacks from elsewhere. Three descended well in advance of Kumamon's snowballs, but didn't move at all as a Super Shocker and Blue Blaster took out two of them.

Before he could ponder too much, Tentomon shouted, "Look out!" Izzy didn't see the GranKuwagamon coming in from the side. While the three Digimon hid behind the battlement, all Izzy had time to do was fall to the ground- an easy target for the enemy's claws. Instead, GranKuwagamon ignored him and lunged for the Digimon, the parapet making it impossible. It flew over everyone's heads and over the courtyard.

Izzy popped up to warn everyone below, but instead of going in, GranKuwagamon stopped and tried turning around.

"Hyper Launcher!" It was a sitting duck for ZekeGreymon's attack from below. The shell connected and GranKuwagamon crashed into the pond. Izzy watched it stumble out, but Christopher was on top of it.

Tempted as Izzy was to lend assistance, he knew there was more than enough backup below. As he heard the enemy's body dissolve into data and Marcus's complaints about not getting a punch in, he and the other Digimon returned their focus to the outside. Yet he couldn't help but wonder about GranKuwagamon. It was in the courtyard, with a free shot at anybody down there. Why did it circle around towards him?

"Tentomon!" An Okuwamon broke through the cover and charged at them, snapping Izzy from his thoughts. Gabumon fired off an attack, but it did little against the giant beetle. "Tentomon!" Izzy shouted again. He clutched his digivice, ready to evolve his partner, but something was wrong. Tentomon just stood there, motionless as an Ultimate-level enemy approached. Even if his attacks wouldn't have done anything, he should have at least tried.

Izzy turned to the courtyard and motioned for assistance. In seconds, OmniShoutmon flew over the wall to meet the attack. Tentomon still didn't move. Just as Izzy was about to order his troops to continue firing, Mikey joined him atop the wall.

"Keep providing cover," he told Kumamon. "Let OmniShoutmon deal with that one." As Kumamon did so, Mikey turned to Izzy. "Send Tentomon after the next one. At this rate we'll run thin before the worst of it gets here."

"I think something's wrong with Tentomon," Izzy replied. "He's not moving."

But then Tentomon did move. He turned and fired his Super Shocker straight at Kumamon. The electricity disabled the bear, knocking him out and turning him back into Tommy. Tentomon flew towards him.

"Tentomon!" Izzy cried, running up to his partner. Tentomon didn't respond, flying past Tommy and towards Gabumon.

"What's going on?!" Mikey shouted.

"I don't know! He doesn't look corrupted!" Izzy kept pace, walking alongside Tentomon. "And he's not attacking me." His mind raced; he tried to stay calm despite the sight of his own partner out of control. But the lack of explanation and terrible timing made it difficult.

Gabumon had stopped firing at the enemy as Tentomon approached him. He backpedaled, not sure if attacking a teammate was the right move. "Super Shocker!" He dove out of the way, barely avoiding Tentomon's attack.

"Blue Blaster!" His counter gave Izzy just enough time to swoop in, grab Gabumon and run. When Tentomon attacked and only barely missed, Mikey joined them.

"I never realized you were this heavy," Izzy muttered as he lugged Gabumon down the spiraling stairs of the tower, Mikey following close behind. Tentomon chased after them, still firing jolts of electricity. They struck just behind, above or between them, pocking the walls. They sprinted to the courtyard, Izzy dropping Gabumon so he could run to Matt.

"What's wrong?" Matt asked as his partner jumped into his arms

"Tentomon's out of control!" Mikey shouted.

"Is he infected?!"

"No!" Izzy exclaimed. "If he were infected, he'd attack all of us and if he was corrupted he'd change form. It's more like..." He thought back to the Flybeemon and their suspiciously uniform flying.

"Mind control," he realized. "Somebody is controlling him." He felt queasy as he thought about somebody other than himself commanding his partner Digimon.

Tentomon hovered into the courtyard, looking around and settling on a target. Agumon jumped in the way, absorbing a Super Shocker but only wrestling it backwards. "So what are we supposed to do with it?!" Mikey cried.

Izzy pulled out his tablet and frantically tried to find a solution. He wasn't going to accept anything that hurt Tentomon, but with the walls now unguarded the real trouble would be arriving any moment.

As Agumon continued to restrain Tentomon, Mikey shook his head. "It doesn't make any sense. Of all the Digimon here, why would it only want Tentomon?"

"That's it!" Izzy narrowed his search. "Whatever it is seems to be controlling the Flybeemon too! And that GranKuwagamon I bet. It can only control insect Digimon!"

"I could use a hand here..." Agumon said, swatting away Tentomon's arms.

"Got it!" Izzy showed his tablet to Mikey. "TyrantKabuterimon! He has the power to control insects! That's what we're facing!"

Mikey grinned. "Awesome!"

Izzy frowned. "Not at all. It says here his entire body is made of chrome digizoid making him nearly impossible to kill, especially since he never has to attack. He just commands insects to do his work for him."

"Hey!" Agumon shouted as Tentomon flapped his way out of his grasp and flew straight at Matt.

Marcus intercepted him with a hard right cross, sending Tentomon flying into the wall, knocking him out. "Takes care of that problem," he said with a grin.

Slackjawed, Izzy's eyes darted between his unconscious partner and Marcus's fist, now charged with DNA and ready to evolve Agumon. "That was horrifying and brilliant at the same time," Izzy mumbled.

"So great, we know who we're fighting," Christopher said. "What does it want with us?"

Izzy sighed. "I think we know that too." He paced across the courtyard. "Tentomon and GranKuwagamon were both going after the same thing." He stopped in front of Gabumon.

"Gabumon?" Matt asked. "What do they want with Gabumon?"

Looking up to the sky at another wave of Flybeemon, Izzy frowned. "I don't know. But if we know who they're after we can plan for it."

* * *

Tai Kamiya dropped his lunch tray on an empty table, scanned the room to see if anyone planned on disturbing him, and sat. Even without a reliable way to get updates from Isthmian, all of the officers were glued to whatever data they could retrieve. Any sign, good or bad, could have demanded a response.

After the first few hours produced nothing conclusive, Tai peered over one shoulder too many and Thomas demanded he go clear his head. Tai didn't want to leave, especially if it meant fielding questions he didn't have good answers to. He wasn't convinced nobody in the hall had these questions, but he must have sent a strong enough message that he didn't want to be bothered.

He was so consumed with watching the other tables he didn't hear the tray landing next to him. Kari said nothing at first. Tai gave her a window, but she ate in silence. Finally, he sighed and asked, "They kick out too?"

She nodded. "Davis and TK made me eat. It's okay. TK's gotten pretty good with the radar."

"Looks like you and TK are getting back to being... you and TK."

Kari flashed a faint grin. "Yeah."

The smile died, the conversation ended, and they both ate their meat buns in peace. Tai still wasn't sure how to talk to Kari. The bombshell of her affair and the fallout it left still made her hard to approach. The Kari he knew wouldn't get mixed up in all that. And she wouldn't have hidden from him in her grief. He still couldn't reconcile this Kari with the one he knew for so long.

And yet... today she still sat with him.

"You're worried about Matt... aren't you?" she asked him.

He closed his eyes. All of this dust in the way and she still saw through him. "Yeah," he answered. "I'm worried about all of them but... it's scary knowing Matt and Izzy are over there."

Tai tried to catch her reaction, but her head was still down. He needed to know where she was. He bit his lip and said, "Are you worried about Izzy too?"

Her eyes widened a little, focusing on some spot on the table, but her head stayed down. "I'm worried about Matt, and Zoe... and even JP and Tommy a little." She sighed. "I don't know what to feel about Izzy right now."

"Are..." He stopped, unsure if this was the place. He decided it had to be. She hadn't eaten with him for weeks. "Sure you can't talk about it?"

She shook her head. At least she didn't lash out. "I'm getting a better idea of what happened but... I don't know, for some reason it feels weird trying to talk to you about it."

He frowned. "Well if it's bugging you, talk to somebody."

"I suppose I could talk to Sora. Or even Jeremy."

"Jeremy?" All the friends in the castle for her to pour her heart out and Jeremy came to mind?

"We've been talking more since Zoe left. I might even talk to Angie about..." She stopped and turned away from Tai.

She happened to see Jeremy and Angie entering with their lunches and nodded at them. Jeremy took that as an invitation, dragging his friend to the table to join them. Angie did so reluctantly, staring at Tai for a long time before asking, "Is it really okay if we sit here?"

Tai managed a smile. "Of course. Free castle. Why wouldn't it be?"

"Well... I don't know... you two looked like stuff was on your minds. I heard that alarm this morning and figured something bad was going on." Angie huffed. "But Ewan and the others weren't sent out so I don't think I want the details."

Tai nodded. "I guess I never knew you two were so close to Kari."

Angie narrowed her eyes at Jeremy. "News to me too." She tapped his arm. "When did you start cozying up to the officers?"

Jeremy folded his arms, leaned back, and grinned. "Even without Zoe around, Kari and I still talk. You think they don't have time for us lowly laborers?"

"Hey, hey..." Tai held out a hand. "Look, you guys are important too! I know I don't talk to you two a lot, but you still mean a lot even though you're not... um..." He knew he worded that wrong.

So Angie helped him out of it: "I'm not Sora."

Tai's hand fell and he scowled. "But everybody knows all about that."

"I'm Nene's best friend. I know everything."

Cringing and looking away, Tai mumbled, "Right... Nene..."

"Hey, don't blame her just because you and your friends have such a screwy relationship."

Tai shook his head. "No it's..." He sighed. "You don't want the details."

Jeremy rose, slamming his hands on the table. "Is something going on at the other castle?!"

"There might be," Kari said, her voice low. "We don't know how dangerous the threat is and we don't have a way to find out."

Angie and Jeremy's faces fell. They leaned back in their chairs, eyes down. "What are you doing to help?" Angie asked.

"We sent the patrol team to back them up, if they can get there in time," Tai answered. "If we sent anyone from here we'd be too exposed." Angie only nodded.

Kari noted Jeremy's expression and said, "It's okay. I'm worried about her too." Jeremy shuddered and folded his arms.

"I'm worried about all of them," Angie said. "Nene... Christopher..." She heaved a deep sigh, but didn't finish.

"Mikey?" Jeremy suggested.

Angie felt a chill, but didn't answer. She nibbled at her food for a moment, then stood and bowed at Tai and Kari. "Thank you." Her voice was hushed. "Can you let us know when you hear something?"

"Sure," Tai replied. Angie took her tray and left, followed quickly by Jeremy.

With just the two Kamiya siblings left, Kari stared at her empty tray. "I know how I feel about Izzy right now."

Tai nodded sadly and rubbed her shoulder.

* * *

Mikey Kudo stood outside the front doors with OmniShoutmon and waited for the inevitable. He saw Aldamon and MagnaGarurumon in the air, engaging the bulk of the army, trying to create a hole for ShineGreymon to find and get a clear shot at TyrantKabuterimon. It wasn't happening smoothly enough, with too many enemy troops to contend with and Aldamon unable to evolve higher.

Furthermore, too many were reaching the castle. Most of them were smaller, weaker opponents that made easy enough prey for Christopher's army, but Mikey knew something bigger would sneak past the front line. Dealing with it was his job, and no matter how sure he was that he had a plan for it, there had already been too many surprises in this battle to be confident.

The vines came suddenly and out of nowhere, lashing out from the trees and forcing Mikey and OmniShoutmon to dive for cover. OmniShoutmon fired into the darkness, hitting something but not getting a reaction out of him. He slithered out on its roots, towering over Mikey and shooting another round of vines at him. OmniShoutmon slashed through them and retaliated again with no effect.

"Gonna need some backup on this one, Mikey," OmniShoutmon told his general. Mikey nodded and relayed the message on his squawker. They would have to dodge this invader until help arrived.

Thankfully, they were up for it, with OmniShoutmon nimble enough to avoid attacks that were dangerous, but simple and telegraphed. He wasn't an agile Digimon with any sort of sophisticated pattern. He saw a target and fired. Once Mikey figured that out, he was able to divide his time between evading and looking him up with his Fusion Loader.

Algomon? This shuffling brown monstrosity was supposed to be Algomon? And wasn't he supposed to be dead? Mikey got too caught up in the implications to dodge the next attack and found his legs pulled out from under him by a set of vines. He tried to worm out but couldn't, and OmniShoutmon was too far out of position. The last thing he saw in Algomon's file was how the vines shot out electricity. Mikey waited for the shock.

"Plasma Railgun!" ZekeGreymon, bounding over the wall, fired his machine gun at the vines, breaking them up and freeing Mikey. The moment he crashed onto the ground nearby, Christopher jumped off his back and ran to Mikey.

"Can't handle this one alone, huh?" Christopher mocked.

Mikey grinned. "Nothing a little more ammo can't handle. Ready?" His teammate nodded as the two held out their Fusion Loaders. "OmniShoutmon!"

"ZekeGreymon!"

"Double Fusion!" Their unified shout fused their partners together.

Shoutmon DX charged at Algomon the moment the fusion finished. "DX Double Blade!" His frantic, rapid slashing evaded the vines. Algomon never staggered or dodged, letting the crusader slice the vine limbs clean off. Shoutmon DX stabbed through his chest, spilling more and more dead vines out of its torso, then jumped back to charge his finishing attack.

"Brave Beat-"

Algomon, undeterred by his maiming, fired a beam from two eye-shaped markings on his shoulders, knocking Shoutmon DX backward. He took two steps forward, more vines protruding from his wounds, ready to shoot at his opponent, still struggling to get to his feet.

"Get up! Come on!" Christopher shouted. Algomon turned, aiming for him and Mikey instead. The two boys froze as the vines fired.

"Hydro Descent!" They couldn't see who shouted from above, but a wall of water crashed in front of them, knocking down the vines. The deluge continued towards Algomon, forcing him to the ground. Mikey and Christopher took cover behind Shoutmon DX as the rush of water stopped and Shawjamon dropped down from the wall to survey his damage.

Shoutmon DX had plenty of time to charge his attack now: "Brave Beat Rock Double Fusion!" He spawned twin bursts of flame and flew into Algomon, leaving his mass to burn away. Shoutmon DX rematerialized near Mikey and Christopher. Now the two were grinning.

Mikey looked up to the top of the wall. "Thanks for the assist, Yushima!" Yushima nodded back and waved his digivice at the general.

"So what now?" Christopher asked. They could hear the sounds of gunfire and explosions as the rest of the battle raged a mile away from them.

"Well, we should help Takuya," Mikey said, scratching his chin. "If that was really Algomon, he was probably one of their main guys. Maybe we're okay leaving Shawjamon here and-"

Bullets of energy shot out of the dying fire, all striking Shawjamon, knocking him out and reverting him back to Kamemon. The fire flared out, revealing a giant mutated Algomon, now covered in brown, cracked armor everywhere but his head. His back teemed with even more vines than its prior form.

Said vines broke out of the ground right next to Mikey and Christopher, shooting towards the drawbridge and slinking their way through the tiniest creases. Before Shoutmon DX could react and cut them, the slightest tug from Algomon sent the entire drawbridge crashing across the moat. Algomon shuffled across it, swatting away Shoutmon DX when he tried to interfere. He squeezed through the doorway, grasping the sides of the walls and breaking through part of them as he pulled himself through into the courtyard.

"How did he survive that?!" cried Christopher.

"That's the second time we killed him," Mikey mumbled.

Inside the castle, as Nene called out Mervamon and Beelzemon to occupy the visitor, Izzy was already gathering data on it. He shook his head in disbelief. "This is impossible. Algomon's dead. We'd have seen the effects if he was reborn."

Marcus darted his head towards the digidestined. "Algomon?! You mean the guy Yoshi killed?"

"That's not the same guy," Matt hissed. "He looks different. Like he digivolved but..." Algomon fired multiple beams from its mouth, sending everyone in the courtyard scurrying. Only Mervamon didn't react in time. The beam hit her on the shoulder and she fell back, dropping her sword.

She prevented Nene from tending to her. "I'm... okay..."

"No you're not! You're still tired from before." Nene recalled her Digimon and grumbled to herself. Beelzemon wasn't going to last long either.

Before Algomon could fire any more shots off, Shoutmon DX got his own in, a series of electric attacks from the bayonets on his arm, stalling Algomon long enough for Mikey and Christopher to dash around him.

"Nene! We need X7!" Mikey shouted.

Nene had been staring at Mervamon in her Fusion Loader, but heard the call. She looked up at Algomon, sighed, and joined Mikey and Christopher. "Right..." she huffed.

Summoning some of his troops to help out, Mikey ordered, "Beelzemon, hold it off just a little longer!"

He, Christopher and Nene stood together and hoisted their Fusion Loaders into the air as they shouted, in unison, "Great Fusion!" Two of the Fusion Loaders glowed a magnificent white, ready to summon the combined might of Shoutmon DX, Ballistamon, Dorulumon, Starmon and Sparrowmon.

Nene's did nothing. The fusion failed.

"What..." Christopher saw Nene's lack of response. "What happened?!"

"I... I don't know," she stammered. She looked at her Fusion Loader, then at Beelzemon, providing more of a diversion than a threat.

"Well make it work! We need to do this!"

Nene bit her lip and held her digivice up again with Mikey and Christopher. Again, hers didn't respond when theirs did. Now her hand shook as Beelzemon took a hard hit.

"Nene, what the hell?!" Mikey dropped his arm and stared her down. "What's wrong?!"

"I don't know!" she cried. "I want it to work but... but..." She stared at Mikey, hunting for an answer. She realized he _was_ the answer.

"It's not going to work," she mumbled. Louder, she repeated, "I can't make it work."

Mikey was livid. "What?! Why not?!"

Christopher grabbed Mikey's shoulder. "Mikey, never mind. We need to do something."

As the two stared at Algomon, grasping for a solution, Nene backed away from them. Her whole body shook, made worse every time Algomon pounded Beelzemon. She had no way to help him. She could only hope for comfort from someone equally helpless.

She didn't get it: Matt clutched her arm and spat, "What's going on?!"

Nene winced at his fingernails digging in. "I... I can't do it. It won't work."

"Then make it work! Look at what's happening!"

She shook her head rapidly. "No it's... we can't fuse X7. We just can't."

"Don't say that!" Matt watched Algomon fire several beams from the void in his chest, taking out most of Mikey's PawnChessmon army. "It's after Gabumon!"

"I know what it wants!" Nene shouted back. "It doesn't matter!"

Matt pulled her arm closer. "How does that not matter?!"

"Matt, I... I..." His face was too frenzied for her to respond. Looking anywhere else only revealed the injured Digimon, cowering humans and damaged walls. A bush in the corner had caught fire. Tears in her eyes, Nene ripped her arm away and ran inside.

Mikey saw it and grunted, "Fine, let's try it without her! Hope this works!" He held up his Fusion Loader. "Shoutmon DX! Ballistamon! Dorulumon! Starmon! Pickmons! Digifuse!"

The end result was a larger Shoutmon DX, adding Digimon-shaped armor to his shoulders and back while bolstering its legs and adding a staff. "Shoutmon X6!" he announced. Mikey and Christopher looked at each other and shrugged.

He wasn't the game-breaker Shoutmon X7 would have been, but he stopped the bleeding, driving his staff down on Algomon, knocking him backwards but otherwise not hurting him.

It gave Izzy enough time to get to his feet and rub the still-unconscious Tentomon. He saw Matt staring at the castle doors.

"Matt?" The blond darted his head towards his teammate. "What they were attempting goes beyond anything we've ever seen. I... couldn't guess what sort of emotional energy goes into it. So..." He shook his head, unable to reach a conclusion.

Matt sneered and stormed after Nene. He found her alone in the dining area, her eyes already red from crying.

"You have a responsibility to fight," he said, teeth clenched. "I don't know what the problem is, but-"

"Friendship and respect," she answered, sniffing. "Great Fusion only works if the three of us truly understand and respect each other as friends." She shook her head. "That's gone."

"Then get it back." He seethed. "They need you out there. Who knows what else is coming after that thing?"

"I know, but... it doesn't work like that. I don't see Mikey the same way. I already told you I can't forget what he did to Angie. And out here he's been-"

"Forgive him then! Just fix this!"

"You can't fake this!" she shouted, before taking a deep breath. "It has to be real. We already went through that once."

"Well, while you three are arguing, that thing is going to get Gabumon."

"I know!" Her head shook violently. "I wish I could ignore all that and pretend but... you don't understand how this works."

"I understand what it looks like when someone I trust lets me down."

Nene gasped. Through her staggered breaths, she mumbled, "Matt... I can't just change how I feel."

Matt exhaled loudly. "Then what good are you?" He walked out, still seething. Now tears were in his eyes. Not as many as in Nene's, left alone to cry, interrupted only by the stray attack rocking the castle walls.

* * *

ShineGreymon peered through every tree branch, GeoGrey Sword at the ready. While Aldamon and MagnaGarurumon did what they could to contain the remaining troops trying to get into the castle, ShineGreymon was after TyrantKabuterimon. Taking him out would have ended everything. Finding him was the first challenge.

A Dokugumon in the trees fired its poison thread at him, which was easy enough to slash away but another impediment to his goal. It was also a clue. ShineGreymon struck it down, saw a second, and used a Glorious Burst attack to expose that entire part of the woods. The foliage burned away; only the charred trunks and a hulking black insect remained. Marcus's Mega charged at it with his sword, gathering energy for what he hoped was a clean shell-shattering strike.

The blade clanged against TyrantKabuterimon's body and shattered. The black beetle leaped off his branch and flew past the shaken ShineGreymon. It ignored MagnaGarurumon and sped towards the castle.

Inside, Shoutmon X6 evaded a flurry of punches from Algomon to force an opening and drive his staff straight through the monster's torso. Algomon fell back into a wall, cracking and nearly toppling it. Shoutmon X6 hit it with an energy attack to keep it down.

It didn't: Algomon got up despite the hole through its stomach. Shoutmon X6 and everybody in the courtyard were too occupied with it to catch TyrantKabuterimon soaring in past them all, crashing through the doors and into the castle. They heard it bang against walls, tear off doors, and shatter everything in its path.

"Gabumon!" Matt motioned to charge in after it, but Izzy dropped Tentomon to hold him back.

Nobody else dared go after it; no available Digimon were strong enough to contain it. They were paralyzed, left with no other choice but to wait to see what damage it would do while hoping Algomon didn't kill them all first.

"Any bright ideas, Mikey?" Christopher asked. Mikey only gritted his teeth and focused as Shoutmon X6 brought down Algomon again. Again, it wasn't enough.

TyrantKabuterimon crashed out of the castle, bursting through the bottom of the courtyard pond and sending the water spiraling through the hole into the basement below. The insect held Gabumon in its pincers. It hovered in the air before landing next to Algomon.

"Release him!" Shoutmon X6 shouted. Algomon knocked him over with an energy blast and faced TyrantKabuterimon.

Shoutmon X6 struggled to get up, but was far from beaten. "You think that'll stop me?!"

"Cease your attack or we destroy him!" Tentomon shouted. His voice was boisterous and clear. Free of restraints, he floated towards the enemies, hovering overhead between TyrantKabuterimon and Algomon.

"Tentomon!" Izzy cried, almost letting go of Matt, frantically trying to break free.

The red bug ignored his partner and boomed, "You have refused to bow before your creator for too long! It is too late to repent. Now all worlds will fall under his dominion!"

Marcus sneered. "What's happening here? Little help Izzy?" Izzy only stared at the trio, mouth agape.

He struggled to hold Matt back again when the eye markings on Algomon's collar glowed. Christopher had to clutch Mikey's shirt to keep _him_ from rushing in front of the shot.

The shot never came. The glowing faded away. Nobody moved.

"This one does not have the gate!" Tentomon shouted. "Where is the other one?!"

"Gate?!" Mikey shouted. "What do you mean?!"

"The other prize you stole from him! Tell us or I kill this one."

"Matt..." Gabumon moaned, barely able to squirm in TyrantKabuterimon's grasp.

"The other..." Marcus stared at Matt. "You mean Patamon?"

Matt looked back at Marcus before turning back to his partner. "Patamon...?"

"What are you going to do to him?!" Izzy asked.

"It's what he will do for his worship," Tentomon answered. Algomon seemed to grunt. "He waited far too long to regain his power to let a simple matter like his death defeat him."

"Matt?" Izzy tried to read his teammates expression. Matt's teeth were clenched, his whole body trembling as he pondered the ultimatum- his partner or TK's.

TyrantKabuterimon squeezed tighter, the tips of its claws puncturing Gabumon's fur. "Matt... please..." Gabumon mumbled. But Matt could only shake.

"There's another castle." Instead, the answer came from Mikey. "Follow the train tracks to the other end. Patamon's there." He gulped. "Now let him go!"

Algomon stared at Mikey for a long time, scanning the general up and down. Mikey held his ground. A crash from the castle walls interrupted them. They turned to find Gallantmon aiming his shield at Algomon, with Sunflowmon carrying Yoshi, Cody and Armadillomon behind him. Dead vines still falling from his chest wound, Algomon dashed out of the castle, crashing through the front gate once again. Its stomping shattered the drawbridge, leaving splinters to fall into the moat.

Dropping Gabumon, TyrantKabuterimon took off into the air and over the wall, careful not to draw too close to Gallantmon. It descended enough to hoist Algomon and fly off with him. Tentomon dropped out of the sky, landing on his shell and avoiding harm. He was dazed and looked around in confusion, but was clearly out of TyrantKabuterimon's control.

Matt pulled away from Izzy and scooped Gabumon, crying as he cradled his partner.

Mikey approached him cautiously. "You okay, Matt?"

Slamming his eyes closed, Matt replied, "Do you know what you just did?"

"I kept everyone alive."

"That wasn't your call!" Matt snapped at him, baring his teeth. "Now they're going after TK!"

"I'd..." Mikey choked up for a moment. He took a deep breath and started over: "I'd rather they try to kill someone later than actually kill someone now. Gabumon's alive. That's the important thing."

"And now all of this is going to happen back home!" Matt set Gabumon down and charged in front of Mikey.

"Hey!" Yoshi dropped down off Sunflowmon and ran up to the boys. "I don't know what just happened here but you two need to calm down."

Mikey flared his nostrils at Yoshi before turning back to Matt. "I'll just have to keep everyone alive back there too." He spun around, holding out his Fusion Loader to reload Cutemon. "Okay, heal up, everybody! As soon as we're healthy we're following them back."

"There's no way we'll get there in time," Izzy said.

Facing him, Mikey answered, "Then you and JP get a message to Command. Tell them what's coming their way. They'll need all the help they can get."

* * *

Takuya Kanbara clutched his ribs as he and Koji stumbled back to the castle with Agumon. They could have tried to fly back in their Digimon forms, but exhaustion set in the moment the enemy army retreated. They were already beaten up and worn out and seriously in danger of accidentally reverting to human forms a hundred feet in the air.

The missing drawbridge didn't give them a second wind. They saw TyrantKabuterimon fly in, but had to leave it for Mikey. They were struggling to keep up with their own battle, to the point where they welcomed ShineGreymon's assistance. Takuya had no idea what happened inside the castle, and wished he could take a long nap before hearing the grim details.

After Sunflowmon helped them across, Takuya took one look at the courtyard and fell to his knees. The main door inside was gone. Pock marks covered the walls, the stone warping in places. Several battlements had been blown clean off. Much of the shrubbery was ablaze; Cody helped ChibiTortomon extinguish the largest fire. Marcus, Mikey and Christopher sat with their backs to the wall as Tommy, still a little wobbly, delivered them cups of tea and coffee. Koji approached them to claim one for himself. In the near corner, Yushima watched Cutemon heal Kamemon, with Ballistamon and Dorulumon waiting for their turn. Matt and Gabumon sat alone.

Takato considered heading for a refreshment, but Tommy noticed, glanced at Koji, and quietly motioned him away. Instead, the tamer approached Takuya, deliberating whether to put a hand on his shoulder. He decided not to and just said, "Um... Takuya?"

Takuya got to his feet, struggling not to heave. "We'll... we'll fix it," he mumbled. Takato barely heard him. "Like this is gonna stop us. They tried to take us down and... we're still here. And... and..."

"And we're leaving," Mikey said, standing up and walking toward them. "Whatever that thing wants, he thought he needed Gabumon. Turns out he's after Patamon. They're heading for the other castle. Soon as we're up for it we're going after them."

"Everybody?" Takuya turned to him, eyebrows narrowed.

"Kamemon and I will stay behind," said Yushima. "Someone needs to wait for Keenan and them to return."

Takuya stared at him before turning back to Mikey, confounded. "But what if there's another attack here? Look at this place; Yushima can't defend it by himself."

Mikey shrugged. "Yeah, well we gotta help Tai and them first. We had to point Algomon their way, so... you know..." Both he and Takuya knew what came next. It went unspoken.

"But we're coming back, right?"

Face grim, Mikey hesitated before answering, "One thing at a time."

Whatever energy Takuya had left evaporated. He wanted to beg for something reassuring from Mikey, but the Fusion Fighter general ran up to what used to be the castle door. JP and Izzy stepped out, shaking their heads. JP clutched a wrench. He was soaking wet.

"The whole radar system got submerged," JP explained. "I think they cut the line anyway, but we're definitely not getting a message through."

"How long will it take to fix?!" Takuya asked, anxious.

"We would need help from Thomas and a number of replacement parts from the river," Izzy answered.

Mikey patted Takuya's back. "It's not safe to stay here right now. Let's just go home, take care of these guys, and who knows? Maybe we'll get back out here someday."

"Someday?!" Takuya exclaimed. "I can't go back now! Tai's going to kill us! Everything we did? Everything we said? We can't just run home crying after a week?!"

"It's not going to be that bad," Takato said, chuckling nervously. "It's not like all this was your fault."

"Wasn't it?" Christopher muttered. "We weren't half as strong as we could have been. We're split off from the others. We're running after Kazu. Our fusions aren't-"

"Hey, shut up," Koji spat.

Takato leaned away from Koji and turned back to Takuya. "I mean, he can't be too mad if you go back to help them fight."

"Did you hear what JP said?" Izzy asked, sterner. "We can't contact them." He walked up to Takuya. "By the time we get there, it may be too late."

"Their radar still works," said Yoshi. "It's not like they won't see it coming."

"But they may not know who they're dealing with. TyrantKabuterimon was able to control Tentomon. That means it can control Wormmon too." He turned to Matt. "They also need to know what they're after. Whatever Algomon is trying to do, we can't let it get Patamon."

"So how do we tell them?" Matt said, popping to his feet. Gabumon walked alongside him. "We've got to get someone down there!"

His first look was towards Yoshi, who scoffed. "Don't look at me." She motioned towards Lalamon. "Have you seen the way she plods?"

"That's a problem," Izzy said. "They already have a head start."

"We've got to do something!" Matt shouted.

"I'll go." They barely heard Nene, standing at the castle doorway. She clutched one of the hanging hinges, eyeing everyone in the courtyard. Sparrowmon stood at her side.

Matt scowled. Christopher narrowed his eyes and said, "Back on the team then?"

"I am." She and her steed walked up to Matt, slow and deliberate, eyes focused on him. He tried to look away. She grabbed his face and forced him into her stare.

"Matt, I know I let you down. I know it has to hurt. But I will make it right." She took a deep breath. "I will protect TK and Patamon."

He sneered and tried to back away. She didn't let him. "Matt, I know what you're feeling. I promise nothing will happen to him. Just... please don't give up on me."

"Nene, I know we're in a jam, but don't think you have to do this," said Izzy. "Fast as Sparrowmon is, it's so dangerous. They're going almost in a straight line and if they see you..."

She looked around the castle. "Part of this is my fault. I want to make it right." She turned to Sparrowmon, staring intently as the Digimon glowed a brilliant white. The light consumed her as Nene felt it emanate from her Fusion Loader as well.

Without hesitation, she pulled it out, pointed it at her partner and shouted, "Sparrowmon- digivolve!"

"Sparrowmon digivolve to..." Her body gained a silvery sheen as her bulky casings gave way to a sleek, birdlike frame entirely covered in armor. "RaptorSparrowmon!"

Nene exhaled, lowering her digivice. "I get what I want," she declared.

She hopped on RaptorSparrowmon's back and looked around the courtyard at everyone marveling at the new Digimon. "Anything else I need to know?" she asked.

Izzy gathered himself enough to repeat, "Okay- Algomon's back somehow and we couldn't bring him down, TyrantKabuterimon can control insects, they're after Patamon, and... and we'll get there as soon as we can."

"Ready Nene?" RaptorSparrowmon asked.

"Hey, uh..." Takuya shuffled toward them, rubbing the back of his head. "Can you make sure Zoe got there safely?" Nene nodded.

She took a long look at Matt, still in awe of her digivolution. Nene gave him a reassuring nod, then commanded RaptorSparrowmon to take off. She did, soaring over the walls, building up her momentum until she neared the sound barrier. Nene held tight, barely aware of their speed. Her mission was the only thing on her mind.

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 24: "Surface of the Sun"**  
Tai and the others must combine all their resources to mount a defense against Algomon's troops. Kari worries about Zoe and considers mounting a rescue against Tai's wishes. Sora and Nene are forced to fight in the same unit.

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
One of TyrantKabuterimon's trademarks is that he rarely fights himself, preferring to command insects and hole up in his shell. This led to the idea of having a psychic influence and attack. It's doubtful that his mind attacks could do any long-term damage, but I feel like he's more likely to use that as a communication method than actual speech. The small part of Zoe's mind that felt compelled to talk is Kazemon. While not strictly an insect type (otherwise the compulsion would be far louder), it's awfully close and perhaps a little susceptible. I was going to have Beetlemon succumb along with Tentomon, undermining Koji and later JP, but it turned out Beetlemon is actually a cyborg type.

The scenes in-between the action with Takato and Tai may feel out of place with everything going on, but it's both a bit of a break and necessary developments in their stories (Takato with Jeri and Tai with Kari). There won't be a lot of free time for either of them next chapter. Also I've come to realize I totally ship Tai and Angie and needed to give them one more scene...

It's never stated explicitly since Mikey and Christopher don't register it, but Algomon evolves to its Mega form after being brought down by Shoutmon DX. It's just called Algomon Ultimate but looks very different with a new set of attacks. And yes, the descriptions vary a bit from pictures of him. There's a reason for that.

Nene isn't lying about Great Fusion. Her damaged relationship with Mikey makes X7 a non-starter and there's really nothing she could have done about it. It's not like Tai muscling through his doubts and forcing Omnimon to happen in tri. And yes, Matt's reaction to Tai in that absolutely inspired this turn of events. Speaking of tri., go ahead and imagine Matt and Christopher as having the same voice actor this chapter. I'm sure most of the time you're hearing Matt's old voice, but Nene getting yelled at by two Vic Mignognas? Yikes.

Shoutmon X6 and RaptorSparrowmon are manga-only products (as stated in episode 9 before I planned on actually using them). Although a few things like Mikey's lack of personal ambition and Nene's bisexuality are lifted from the manga, the actual events don't fit in (we've got enough cross-dimensional weirdness going on without having to figure out Gatomon). So everyone's still going to be surprised at these new forms. But let's be real- it really wasn't fair that Nene never made a Digimon evolve (even in the manga, Sparrowmon was under Kotone's watch at the time).

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B003B2MKPC


	25. 24- Surface of the Sun

**Neverworld**

 _This is a story full of restless nights._  
 _Of do or do not 'cause there is no try._  
 _Across a decade we flew high and we fell low._  
 _And getting up when we're dragged down is all we know._  
 _\- Yellowcard, "Surface of the Sun"_

 **Episode 24**

Sora Takenouchi had heard the rumors of an attack on Isthmian. She didn't get much from upstairs as they didn't have many details, which was worrying in itself. It was on her mind, but so was the relief that she and Biyomon weren't being deployed and she and Suzie could spend an afternoon giving the floor of the hall a much-needed polishing.

She had almost finished sweeping when the front doors swung open. "Naturally," she mumbled under her breath, hoping the shoes about to trample through wouldn't undo her work too much. When she turned, the last thing she expected was for Nene to own them. Sora steeled herself for whatever came next; her disdain aside, this was surely not a social visit.

"You're under attack," Nene said. That was all it took; Sora dropped her broom and the two ran to the elevator.

"Where's TK?" the Fusion Fighter asked inside, eyes focused on the elevator doors.

"Upstairs, probably," Sora replied. "He took over Zoe's duties. Why?"

"They're after Patamon. They came to us looking for Gabumon, but-"

"Gabumon?! Is..." Sora wanted to ask, but she didn't want to ask her. There was no way the subject wouldn't be awkward.

Nene took a deep breath. "He's... he's fine." Sora could tell there was more. She didn't hear it.

The doors slid open to the top floor. The girls spilled out and ran up to Tai's desk, simultaneously shouting, "We're under attack!"

Tai narrowed his eyes, darting between the two of them. "Okay..." he settled on Nene. "You're here... and getting along with Sora."

"Tai, this is serious!" Sora exclaimed.

"I know, I know..." He stood. "We've got them on radar. We just hit the alarm. What happened up there? Why are you here?"

"More importantly, what are we facing?" asked Thomas. "We can estimate the size of the threat, but we can't ID all of the signatures."

Nene nodded. "That's why I'm here. I know who they are- and what they're after." She turned to TK. Like everyone, he was staring back at her. "They want Patamon."

"Patamon?!" burst Tai. TK's face paled. Kari patted his knee.

"What do they want with Patamon?" Davis asked.

"I don't know." Nene looked down. "I missed that part. There must be something special about him."

"That mutation..." Sora mumbled, turning to TK. "Did Joe tell you about that?"

TK squirmed. "Yeah, but... we don't know what it is."

"But didn't you say they were looking for Gabumon?" Sora asked Nene.

"Yes, and they got to him," Nene said, voice grim. "He wasn't what they wanted."

"How did they get to him?" Thomas asked. "I mean given what you have at your disposal. ShineGreymon... Shoutmon X7..."

"We... tried to fuse X7..." Nene's hands shook. "I wasn't able to make it work." She bit her lip, her eyes cheating up. First at Sora, who narrowed an eye, then at Tai, who only nodded.

"Happens to all of us," mumbled the commander.

"What about Susanoomon?" Thomas continued.

"Susanoomon?"

Davis snickered. "Yeah, get this- Takuya and Koji digifuse. We needed it for a battle a few years ago. It was crazy."

"Takuya? Oh, um..." Nene looked at everybody and suddenly felt a sense of dread. "Did Zoe make it back here?"

"Zoe?" Kari leaned forward. "What do you mean? Why would she be here?"

"Apparently she took her spirits and left a couple days ago. That limited Takuya." She leaned back on Tai's desk. "Something tells me she didn't make it."

Kari fell back into her chair in stunned silence. TK rubbed her shoulder.

"Well..." Tai shook his head. "First thing's first. How long do we have before they get here?"

"At their rate of travel, less than an hour," Thomas said, signaling to TK to sound the alarm.

Clutching at his goggles, Tai nodded. "Nene, tell Thomas everything you can about the enemy. Davis? TK? Meet me downstairs. We've defended this place before. We'll just have to do it again."

* * *

Yoshi Fujieda wished she could have plodded with Sunflowmon after a few hours planted on MegaKabuterimon's back. Maybe it wouldn't have been bad if she could ride alone, but between her, Izzy, Takuya and Mikey there was no room to spare. It was still probably better than Matt and Takato awkwardly trying to share space on KendoGarurumon speeding down the train tracks or Tommy clinging to MetalKabuterimon tearing through the dirt.

Even worse, the buzzing wings didn't do enough to deafen the conversation on board. So she not only had to huddle close to these guys, she had to hear them as well.

"Still bummed?" Mikey asked Takuya. Yoshi was trying not to pay attention to the despondent expression on his face. Mikey was too nosy for that.

"You don't understand," Takuya mumbled. "I was dreaming of this for years. To get out... to do things our way. To just... explore. It felt so good to break away, and now..."

Mikey shrugged. "Hey, the important thing is we tried."

Takuya glared back. "Screw that! We did all that planning! We burned all those bridges just to watch everything blow up in our face! And now everyone's in trouble and we're crawling back." He scoffed. "We tried? Did you care about this at all?"

"Look, the important thing now is taking care of these guys and making sure there's a place to crawl back to."

"Yeah, and then spend the rest of eternity back on Tai's leash. God, I don't want to deal with him right now. We're never getting out of here."

"Hey, don't give up. You'll get another chance."

Takuya stared at Mikey for a while, then grumbled, "I'm starting to get why everyone hates you."

Mikey turned to Izzy. "You guys aren't going to be too harsh on everyone who left, right? No sense to keep fighting with each other."

"Hmm?" Izzy looked back at him. "What were you talking about?" He shook his head. "I was trying to figure out what's going on with Algomon."

"What do you mean? He won't stay dead. Seems pretty simple. I mean, sure we couldn't fuse X7, but we still hit him pretty hard. You'd think it would have been enough. I mean, didn't Rosemon finish him off last time?"

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Lalamon snapped. Yoshi held her down.

"The problem instead might be that he's already dead," Izzy surmised. "Far as we know, the world is still reacting to his death. What if he isn't back after all?"

"What, like a zombie?" Mikey asked.

Izzy shook his head. "I'd prefer a more scientific description... but I'm not sure there is one. But how do you kill something that's already dead?"

"And what does a dead Digimon want with Patamon anyway?" asked Yoshi.

Scratching his chin, Izzy said, "Who knows how long he had Patamon and Gabumon captive? It must have been for a reason. What could he do with them?"

"They sure didn't make very good guards. But he must have needed them for something."

"And he must not have known which one." Izzy shook his head. "The trouble is we don't know how long Algomon had them or what went on in there. Matt and TK don't remember anything."

"Just the dream TK had about our world." Izzy looked over his shoulder at Yoshi, suddenly concerned. Yoshi leaned away. "What? Rika told me about it."

"That dream where Algomon invaded the human world..." Izzy mumbled. Facing forward, his expression hadn't changed. "This could be bad."

* * *

Kari Kamiya listened to her brother explain the defensive strategy. Throughout the years, they had gotten comfortable with the notion of an unstoppable united force capable of meeting any threat. Without the Isthmian crew, the castle had just ten viable partnerships able to fight. They would never have stood a chance without Nene's scouting report cluing them into enemy attack patterns, targets, and tricks.

Davis and Ken had already DNA digivolved Imperialdramon, shielding Wormmon from the risk of exposure to TyrantKabuterimon's mind control. If the dragon were to fall, Ken's partner could still succumb. Their lack of numbers and the enemy's resilience made it unwise for anyone to advance on them, forcing the battle to take place entirely in or over the castle. Kari even had to listen to the precautions to keep TK and Patamon out of harm's way. It was a smart tactic, but dangerous. Tai sounded unconvinced explaining it, frequently glancing at Thomas in a way that suggested a tense argument preceding this briefing.

As frightening as all of this was, it barely stirred Kari. All of her friends were in tremendous danger and their home was sure to take considerable damage, but it was background noise in her mind. She couldn't stop worrying about Zoe. She never got the chance to get all the details from Nene, but Kari could picture it. She knew Zoe was growing sick of everything at Isthmian and losing her faith in Takuya. But using her spirits and leaving on her own? Was she in trouble? Was anyone looking for her? Was anyone going to, or were they too occupied with this attack to dwell on it?

"Koichi, you'll be on lookout upstairs." Tai paced across the stage as the briefing wound down. "Let us know what's going on and try to get in contact with Takuya so we now when the cavalry's coming." He clasped his hands together and smiled at the team. "Okay, I know it's tough but we just need to bear down and take care of these creeps. Let's go!" There was no cheer or rousing cry from anyone. They stood, some with firm nods, and joined their Digimon to get into position.

"Ready for this, Kari?" Gatomon found her first.

Kari didn't answer, instead picking her partner up and running up to Tai. He had jumped off the stage, pulling his goggles from his neck to around his forehead. "So... Tai, um..."

"Is something wrong?" he asked. He gave his sister a look of concern, but mixed it with stuttered glances across the room.

"Tai, I know I'm supposed to be-"

He nodded, reiterating her role: "Backing up Henry, but close to Yolei in case you need to-"

"Actually..." She took a deep breath, setting Gatomon down. "I want to go look for Zoe."

"What?! Now?! Are you crazy?"

"What if she's in real trouble? Are we just going to forget about her?"

"Well, no, but we kinda got our hands full right now!"

"I just..." Kari slammed her eyes closed. "I have a bad feeling. She needs help."

"Who doesn't?" Tai sighed. "Look, I know we should send help, but let's get through this and then worry about it."

"I can't not worry about it, Tai. She's my friend. She left a bad situation up there and I'm afraid she's in a worse one. I don't think we can afford to-"

"Kari?" Tai put his hands on her shoulders. "If we mess this up, we could lose everything. And you know who they're after. We need you."

Kari looked down. "Zoe needs me too. Tai, we'll be okay. Everyone's here for you." She draped a hand over her chest. "But someone needs to be there for her. She needs to know she has friends that won't let her suffer."

Tai could only shake his head. He wanted to say more, but she wasn't budging. And every minute mattered. In a deep exhale, he finally said, "Okay fine." Kari didn't react. "But I'm not letting you go alone. I want you to go with... um..." He didn't actually have anyone in mind that wouldn't threaten his operation.

"I'll find someone. Thanks, Tai." She hugged him, squeezing him longer than he was comfortable with. He hugged back only reluctantly, still unsure about her mission and desperate to get back to his.

"Just don't let them see you. Please be careful." He pulled away, stared at her for a moment longer than he needed to, and ran off when Thomas called his name.

Kari smiled only briefly, dropping it when Gatomon said, "I know this is important to you, but what's your plan? I hope you're not thinking of grabbing who I think you are."

"Yep." Kari turned around and walked to the outside door.

Gatomon followed, mumbling, "I can think of at least two problems with that."

He was handing out radios to everybody as they headed into position. "Done passing out walkie-talkies, Jeremy?" Kari asked.

Jeremy tapped his foot as he handed one to her. "Walkie-talkies?! These are high-end tactical radios specifically calibrated for critical situations like this!"

Kari passed it to Gatomon, who looked it over and said, "I bet they work just as well as the squawkers."

The digidestined took Jeremy's wrist. "You need to come with me. Zoe's in trouble. We're going after her."

Jeremy pulled his wrist back, almost jumping. "What?! What happened?!"

"Sounds like she couldn't take what was happening up there and tried to fly back here." Kari lowered her head. "She didn't make it."

He narrowed his eyes and stared into hers. They didn't waver. Finally, he broke it off, setting down the leftover radios and marching outside. Kari followed. He waved her away and said, "Nope! If she's going to do something that stupid, I'm not going along with it."

"She used her spirits," Kari replied, freezing him. "She hasn't used her spirits in years. She always said the memories were too intense for her. That's how much getting back here meant to her. That's how much she regrets leaving us."

Kari could sense his wavering, but he didn't answer. She went on: "Jeremy, I'm not asking you to take her back. Only you can decide that and I don't know if it's what she even wants. But she needs us right now. And I know you care about her enough to help me find her."

He stalled for a long time, but finally his shoulders slumped. "I don't have a Digimon," he said.

Kari smiled. "It doesn't matter if you don't have a Digimon."

Jeremy turned around, staring at Kari and the determined smile on her face. Gatomon said, "Do we need to get Davis? Davis is really good at this speech."

Finally, he sighed and walked up to her. "So where do we start looking and how do we get there?"

Her grin widened. "We fly, of course." She held out her D3 and shouted, "Digi-Armor Energize!"

* * *

Nene Amano stared ahead at the castle towers, trying to focus on the battle they'd soon witness. She had done what she had set out to do: TK was safe in hiding while the team tailored its strategy to the intelligence she provided. Now, aboard Imperialdramon perched high on the mountain overlooking the flying Digimon assigned to clear out the first wave, she hoped it was enough.

"I've got visual!" came the report from the Monitamon stationed on the other side. "Engagement in five minutes." Koichi relayed the same message over the radio.

"Ten-four," Davis replied, turning to his team. "Ready ladies?"

"Remember, you'll need to be ready to jump on your Digimon quickly if we need to change to Fighter Mode," Ken said. Yolei and Sora nodded. Nene heard it, but barely processed it. She had too much else on her mind.

"Are you okay?" Sora asked. It wasn't the token call making sure a teammate had her head in the game. Nene thought she hadn't given anything away, but Sora was not only staring at her, but looked genuinely worried. "Something's bothering you," she reiterated.

"It's... nothing," Nene replied, her voice low, her lip quivering. "We have bigger things to worry about."

"What happened with Matt?" Nene winced. She hated giving herself away.

"It's personal," she mumbled back. "I'll deal with it later. It was my fault anyway."

Sora sighed. "What, not being able to fuse right?" Nene looked away, holding back an annoyed grunt. "Thought so. He doesn't like when that happens. And with Gabumon in danger?"

Clenching a fist, Nene grimaced and turned back to her companion. "You don't understand what goes into it. I don't know if it's the same as with..." She gestured towards Imperialdramon below them. "But it requires a strong bond between all three of us. Recently my opinion of Mikey has changed too much."

"That's not your fault," Sora replied. "I'm a bit leery of him, actually. It's one thing to be close to someone you're fighting a war with. You can't be blamed if you see him differently now."

"That's nice of you to say, but-"

"But nothing!" Sora exclaimed. "If Matt's upset about that, he's wrong."

"Right or wrong, I don't know where we stood when I left."

"Well, if he still doesn't get it, I'll yell at him." Sora shook her head in anger.

Nene faced forward, occasionally glancing at Sora. The digidestined also stared ahead, focused squarely on Garudamon. With a faint grin, Nene said, "Thank you. I feel better now."

"And I feel like taking something out." Sora clutched her digivice.

Monitamon checked in again: "They're heading over the mountain now! Ready Miss Nene?"

"Ready." Nene stood. They looked up as the swarm of Flybeemon passed over their heads.

Just as she was about to give Sparrowmon the command, Sora popped to her feet, digivice in the air. "Garudamon! Digivolve!" Garudamon glowed, retaining its shine even after digivolving into a giant bird with four golden wings.

"Crimson Flare!" The massive flames from Hououmon's mouth flew forward and incinerated much of the first wave of attackers.

Nene raised an eyebrow at Sora, but her concentration was solely on her partner.

"Not bad, but watch me!" Sparrowmon zoomed into the action, wildly firing her pistols at some of the stragglers. Nene let slip a chuckle under her breath.

* * *

Suzie Wong sat back on a couch in the library, calmly watching MirageGaogamon fight a TigerVespamon outside. She was aware of the situation, and careful to sit well away from the windows in case they shattered in the battle. At the same time, she also wished she could run to the kitchen as the notion of daintily sipping a cup of tea while this was going on felt totally badass.

Yet she knew she had a job to do, and only a matter of time before she was up to bat. She chose her position carefully indeed, with not only a view of the window but also the security door leading to Leo Tower. The pounding began, and Suzie casually stood and watched as an intense pressure from outside blasted the door off, allowing a Kongoumon in. It scanned the room and saw Suzie standing alone. Easy prey, it figured, and it charged at her.

Suzie didn't move, waited for Kongoumon to reach its mark and commanded, "Now!"

"Snake Punch!" Mervamon's serpent arm lashed out of the stacks, chomping Kongoumon and crushing it to death. She stepped out and winked at Suzie. "With you, it's too easy."

"Look out!" Suzie shouted. The humanoid snake Digimon turned around in time to slice through a web attack fired by a Dokugumon. More were on the way- eight scaling down the walls through the busted door.

Mervamon readied herself. "I can handle this!"

"Don't chance it! Run!" Suzie was already backpedaling, and once she turned around and sprinted, Mervamon was quick to follow. Suzie pushed a button on her radio and said, "They're coming in the east entrance. Meet in the hallway!"

That was their destination, and they almost made it. A shot of web hit Suzie's leg, taking her down and sticking her to the floor. As Mervamon tried slicing through, the Dokugumon fired on her too, hitting her with enough web to bring her to the ground.

"Double Impact!" Beelzemon rushed in and provided the cover fire needed for Jeri to slide in with a kitchen knife to free them.

"Keep going, Beelzemon, I've almost got them!" Jeri shouted.

By now the Dokugumon had turned their attention to him. Beelzemon kept firing, shouting, "Fight me all you want! I'm not afraid to die!"

Jeri paused her rescue to turn to him and say, "Um, don't go that far."

"Yeah, don't ruin this for us," Suzie added.

"You are _not_ putting me through that again!" Mervamon exclaimed.

Beelzemon held the Dokugumon off long enough for Jeri to free Mervamon, but another problem arose when TigerVespamon crashed through the front door. The cyborg bee popped into the air quickly and buzzed, "Where is the one our lord seeks?"

"Oblivion Cannon!" Beelzemon turned and instantly fired a huge shot from his right arm. Vespamon dodged it. The shell almost hit Gaogamon and Thomas rushing in behind them.

Suzie heard Thomas over the radio: "MirageGaogamon's too big to fight in the castle. Can you two take it?"

"Stall the spiders and we're on it!" Suzie replied. Gaogamon charged at the remaining Dokugumon as Mervamon joined Beelzemon. "You're up, Angie!"

The Fusion Fighter popped out from her cover, jumping on the stage, Loader in the air. "Okay! Mervamon! Beelzemon! Digifuse!" The resulting fusion added a cannon to Mervamon's snake arm, which it rapidly fired at TigerVespamon.

It still didn't land, so she charged at the enemy, finally connecting with her sword, piercing its shell midair and slamming it into the ground.

Now with the upper hand, Jeri and Suzie joined Angie on stage. The fused Mervamon dominated the fight, while Gaogamon was on top of the Dokugumon threat. Suzie folded her arms and grinned at the other two girls. "Those boys make it look so hard."

* * *

Tai Kamiya questioned his positioning. Unsure where the heavy hitters in the opposing army would strike, WarGreymon perched on the roof of Wizard Keep, ready to assist wherever a battle got dicey. That part was going fine: the reports from the front courtyard and inside the castle were encouraging, GrandisKuwagamon could evade MegaGargomon's heaviest attacks but failed to do any damage of his own, while Hououmon was a master at keeping anything else from dropping in from above. WarGreymon's position was perfect. Tai just wished he had his partner's view instead of being stuck on the ground relying on reports from Koichi.

He lost focus for a moment, mesmerized by Hououmon laying waste to everything in the air. Maybe it's what made him flinch at the slightest movement on the mountain. Algomon crept down the cliff face, almost low enough to pounce on MegaGargomon. Tai flagged down Joe and pulled him and his partner over. Somehow Algomon didn't react when Vikemon stormed into position.

"Viking Axe!" The morning stars on his back shot forward on chains, smashing Algomon and sending him crashing to the ground.

Tai grinned, then shouted, "Henry! Knock him down, then clear out!"

"Mega Twister!" MegaGargomon charged at GrandisKuwagamon, who slipped away from his arms.

"Viking Flail!" He was in no position, however, to avoid Vikemon smashing him to the ground.

"Power Pummel!" Once recovering, MegaGargomon punched the ground, rippling across the courtyard and keeping both enemies on the ground.

"Great, now get out!" Tai shouted, looking up and raising an arm. He and Joe backed away as well.

"Terra Force!" WarGreymon had already charged his primary attack and now launched his giant energy ball straight on top of Algomon. The resulting force threw Tai and Joe off their feet and separated Henry and Terriermon. With his face in the dirt, Tai saw nothing and heard the shattering of windows and felt the warmth of the atmosphere as the energy wave rippled across the courtyard.

Silence followed, followed by the radio crackling and Davis over the air: "Dude, everyone okay down there?"

Tai picked himself up. The first thing he saw was Bukamon. He scrambled to his feet as Joe stared back at him. "Bit much, maybe?" he asked.

Helping Joe to his feet, Tai looked up at WarGreymon, still floating above the courtyard. "Not with this thing."

GrandisKuwagamon was no longer there. Algomon was, but didn't move. Tai, Joe and Bukamon approached cautiously to survey the damage. The sealed door to the train platform had been blown clean off and the windows to every room in Wizard Keep save the upper command center had shattered.

"I am so glad I'm in a tower," Joe muttered.

On the other side, Henry and Terriermon looked over Algomon. "Did that do it?"

The moment Algomon stirred, the three boys eased back. The creature's head snapped backwards, eyeing Tai and Joe. Its eyes fired rounds of energy bullets at them. Tai tackled Joe to the ground, barely dodging.

WarGreymon descended and was met with a strong punch from Algomon, giving it time to get to its feet. Still on the ground, Tai looked back as the two fired attacks at each other.

"What is up with this guy?" Tai mumbled.

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa clutched both Palmon and TK as the explosions outside shook the entire train platform. Ewan, in turn, clutched her. They all found the decision to hide Patamon in the station surprising, and the loud evidence of attacks outside didn't reassure them. The logic was that stashing him in some hidden corner inside the castle penned him in. If Algomon was as hard to bring down as the reports indicated, his penetrating the building could be inevitable, leaving Patamon with no escape. The platform was harder to secure, but the less obvious spot offered an escape route should it be breached.

Tuwarmon patrolled the far exit, making sure the door was sealed and maintaining an illusion technique to hide it from the outside. Once the battle started and the enemy army didn't threaten the exit, it was clear it had worked, but the battering outside was still worrying.

"Let's hope we're causing all that," Mimi said.

Ewan gritted his teeth. "Even if we are, what are we fighting?" Another boom made him dig his nails into Mimi's shoulder.

TK shook his head rapidly, squeezing the bundle in his arms. "And they're after Patamon?" Mimi set Palmon down and pulled him into a full hug.

"They won't get him," Mimi insisted. "We'll do whatever it takes."

"But Mimi..." Palmon waited for eye contact. "Does that mean..."

Mimi's grip on TK softened. She darted her eyes between him and her partner. Another explosion, this one the loudest yet, rattled the chamber, knocked Palmon over and had them all huddling again. Bits of rock fell from the ceiling into Mimi's hair.

"That was a bad one," TK whispered, shivering in Mimi's arms.

"Oh no..." Ewan pointed toward the station entrance and the natural light coming in. "Hide!"

Clutching their Digimon, Mimi and TK frantically jumped off the platform ahead of Ewan. He stayed behind while the two digidestined ran past the platform into the narrow tunnel. With them safely out of sight, Ewan peeked over the platform floor to see if anyone stormed in.

The Digimon didn't storm in so much as it was swept in. Whatever pushed GrandisKuwagamon along the floor into the terminal left him to crawl the rest of the way. He forced his way to his feet, but still struggled to stand. Despite this, he limped onto the platform, looking around. Ewan sneaked back to Mimi and TK.

"Not good..." he mumbled. "I don't suppose you're strong enough to take on GrandisKuwagamon?"

"We can't even beat a regular Kuwagamon." TK tried to peer over Ewan's shoulder at the threat, but they were too far in the tunnel.

"Let's go." Ewan motioned them down the tunnel. TK shuffled his partner to one hand and turned on a flashlight as they walked. One sound from GrandisKuwagamon behind them turned it into a run, Ewan hoisting Palmon into his arms.

"Sure you can't carry me instead?" Mimi huffed.

They ran as long as they could, which was far shorter for someone who didn't play basketball. Mimi started to slow, but Ewan grabbed her hand and pulled her back to their pace. It was only a matter of time before their shoes clanging on the metal track gave them away. Halfway down the tunnel they could sense GrandisKuwagamon chasing after them. TK dared to shine the light back to confirm it.

Despite his injuries, GrandisKuwagamon gained on them. With the exit still fifty yards away, Mimi and now TK had slowed to a jog while their pursuer kept his pace. He was closer to them than they were to the door.

"Get down!" Ewan tackled Mimi to the ground. TK fell when he saw Tuwarmon in front of them.

"Fujin's Waves!" The powerful gust of wind knocked GrandisKuwagamon off his feet. Tuwarmon leaped over his partner and landed between them and the enemy. "Get going!"

They did, although Ewan looked back to see how Tuwarmon fared against the Mega. Once TK had gotten the flashlight far enough away, the battle was in darkness- probably an advantage for the armored ninja. Either way, it bought them enough time to reach the portal. Mimi raised her digivice to open the security doorway.

The sunlight blinded them, giving them no clue what to expect on the other side of the door, especially as none of them had ever ridden the train out or had a hand in the tunnel's construction. The track exited on a grassy hill, gradually sloping down the rest of the mountain. Cliffs surrounded them, save for a ridge on their left leading back around the mountain towards the castle. Most importantly, there were no enemies in sight.

Ewan clicked on his radio as Mimi and TK stood clear of the tunnel. "This is Ewan! We got smoked out! What should we do?" The radio only echoed static. He turned to the others. "I don't know if they can hear us."

GrandisKuwagamon burst out of the tunnel, dragging along both a dazed Tuwarmon and one of his ninja copies. Ewan winced and pulled his partner into his Fusion Loader, then backpedaled, stopping in front of Mimi and TK. With the big bug closing in on them, he held his arms in front of the two digidestined and their Digimon.

"What are you trying to do here, Ewan?" TK asked.

"Keep you alive. That's all I got."

Palmon tried to squirm out of Mimi's arms. "Mimi... please..."

"Palmon, no, he's a Mega," Mimi whimpered. "He'd tear you apart. I can't watch that again."

They eased back further, their backs against the rock. "There's nothing else we can do!" Palmon pleaded, finally shaking free. She jumped in front of Ewan. "You're afraid of me dying again... what about all of you?"

Mimi trembled as she looked over at Ewan and TK. Neither were begging her on or forcing her to fight; they had been through it before. They understood. Even so, they were in danger. Mimi couldn't have that. No matter if it put Palmon in the crosshairs, it was her duty to protect, no matter the odds. Mimi squeezed her digivice. Even with her eyes closed she could sense the glow.

She held them shut until the process ended, and even then had to force them open. How could she bear to watch the inevitable mismatch? Togemon may have offered some protection and could buy them some time, but it was hopeless. To her surprise, however, she didn't see a giant cactus. She was far beyond a a giant cactus.

"Rose Spear!" Rosemon used her whip to parry GrandisKuwagamon's claws, striking her again once free. This was a fairer fight.

It did, however, pose a different problem. GrandisKuwagamon evaded Rosemon's attack and lunged straight at TK, who barely dodged in time. Rosemon stepped in to protect him from another attack. Ewan mumbled, "She's stronger, but we can't hide behind her."

Raising his voice, he shouted, "TK! The path! Get Patamon out of here!"

TK popped to his feet, eyeing the ridge. "What about you guys?!"

"We're not as important! They're after Patamon! Get to the woods! Go!" With one long, worried stare at Mimi, TK held his partner closer and navigated the narrow cliffside path.

Mimi and Ewan watched him scramble to safety and missed GrandisKuwagamon clutch Rosemon with his pincers and toss her to the ground. He tried to pursue TK, but Rosemon's whip grabbed her arm and pulled him back to her. She had to somersault back to avoid his claws. He didn't give up, slashing away at her as she scrambled backwards along the grass.

Finally, GrandisKuwagamon used his Scissor attack to grip her again, throwing her against a rock face. The blow rattled Rosemon and made her an easy target. Mimi drove her head into Ewan's shoulder and mumbled, "No... please..."

"Forbidden Temptation!" She didn't see the attack, but when she opened her eyes Rosemon was on the other side of GrandisKuwagamon, at a distance, and firing a blast of rose petals at him. GrandisKuwagamon fell to his knees, allowing Rosemon to escape.

"Wait, what?" Ewan mumbled. "She can clone herself too?"

"Huh?" Mimi saw what were clearly two Rosemon. "That would be new."

Suddenly, they were in the shadow of MegaKabuterimon, flying overhead and descending enough to allow its four occupants to disembark. Yoshi rushed up to Mimi and said, "Looked like you needed a hand."

"Where's TK?" asked Izzy.

Ewan pointed to the trail. "Heading to the woods."

As he said that, TyrantKabuterimon appeared overhead, soaring over both Rosemon and swooping low over the path. Izzy frantically held out his digivice, de-evolving his partner all the way to Motimon just before his Ultimate form could turn on them.

Mikey shouted into his squawker: "Takato! Head around to the woods and find TK." He turned to Takuya and nodded. As soon as GrandisKuwagamon was occupied and away from the tunnel, the two goggleboys charged towards it and ran in.

As Izzy retrieved his partner and joined the group, Ewan pointed to Mikey and Takuya and asked, "Are they..."

Izzy nodded. "Koichi hasn't just been talking to you guys. We know what's going on." All the same, his eyes widened at the sight of a pair of Rosemon engaging GrandisKuwagamon. "Mimi... did you...?"

Mimi didn't respond. She stood in front of them alongside Yoshi, both putting all their concentration on the battle. Izzy and Ewan stood beside them, the former mumbling, "All the way to Mega?"

"Guess I've had this built up for a while." Her reply was barely above a whisper.

"Um... who's got which one?" Ewan asked.

* * *

TK Takaishi knew he needed to go faster. The path was wide enough for walking, but the ridge had too many bends and no guardrails to run. One wrong move and he'd topple over into an abyss of tree branches. His pace was slow enough that he even had time to look down and ponder the feasibility of jumping should it come to that. That wasn't an option. So he kept speedwalking, as fast as he could while keeping his balance with the Digimon in his arms.

He could feel the path's descent as the ridge took him under the tree cover. It wasn't a guarantee of safety, but at least took plummeting to his death off the table. Just as the road straightened enough to break into a run, he felt a vibration in his head, severe enough that he almost dropped his parcel to clutch it. The vibrations seemed to have voice. It didn't sound like speech, but he understood the message: "Release him or die."

TK stopped and looked back in time to see the black form of TyrantKabuterimon above him. The digidestined took a few steps back, wondering how safe the woods really were with a giant insect trailing him. TyrantKabuterimon approached him, but not in a rapid swoop. It was slow, cautious even. Whatever it wanted with Patamon, it wanted him alive and refused to do anything to jeopardize that. TK considered something drastic like holding him over the cliff but nobody, not even a giant sadistic beetle, was going to buy that ruse. Besides, holding him the way he was shielded part of his body, which may have been the only reason he was still alive.

"Shield of the Just!" The beam attack bothered TyrantKabuterimon enough for Gallantmon to leap past it and in front of TK. The united voices of Takato and Guilmon commanded, "Keep going, TK! We'll hold him off!"

The concept of bio-merge still blew TK's mind, but he wasn't going to stay and admire it. TK ran into the woods, now sprinting in whichever direction offered the least resistance. In the back of his mind, he knew he should be angling back towards the castle, but his mind was racing too fast for it to be anything but a tie-breaker between two feasible paths. His top priority was getting away, no matter how lost he got or how tired or how many stray branches tugged at and tore his clothes.

After running for several minutes, he saw a clearing and an easy path to it. Making sure nothing was chasing him, he slowed down and carefully looked over it, staying under the cover of the trees. He recognized the waterfall immediately and sighed in relief. TK knew where this was; Davis and Ken had dragged him out a few times for some late-night swimming. If he could find his way back to the castle in the dark, he could hide out here until everything died down.

He didn't feel the silk around his wrists until they tugged him up, pulling his arms apart and forcing him to drop his Digimon. TK watched him as he was hoisted against a tree, his arms tied to branches eight feet in the air. A pair of Kunemon covered his hands and wrists in web, then bound his legs as well. TK fought for a minute, but nothing gave. The two Kunemon hung in the air, staring at the Digimon motionless on the ground. TK banged his head against the tree in frustration; all of his work undone by two possessed Rookies.

TK fought as much as he could, but TyrantKabuterimon's arrival was inevitable, dropping from high in the sky, well away from Gallantmon's reach. It skimmed the pool below the waterfall, gliding to a stop in front of TK. TK didn't have the energy to plead with it, and could only close his eyes as it poked at the Digimon that had been bundled in TK's arms the whole time.

The vibrations returned, louder and more painful than before, making TK scream in agony. It subsided enough to let the voice through: "What is this?" TK forced his eyes open just enough to watch TyrantKabuterimon smash his horn through the orange-painted cloth wrapped around a wire frame shaped like Terriermon's head.

Despite the pain, TK forced a smirk. "You think I'd be dumb enough to actually walk around with him?" He was ready for the mind attack that followed, but it was still felt like his head was being torn to shreds from the inside. TK hoped he would slip into unconsciousness; as excruciating as this was, it was still surely easier to survive than whatever TyrantKabuterimon was about to do to him with his claws.

"Howling Blaster!" TK didn't feel those claws eviscerating him. Instead, he felt the blast against the tree, loosening his restraints enough for him to snap out of them and fall to the ground. His legs were bruised and the vibrations continued, but they were less focused now. He was undamaged enough to scramble away, following his brother's voice.

"TK!" Matt cried as his brother jumped into his arms. "Is Patamon okay?"

"I think so," TK said, still huffing. The vibrations had mostly died down and he was safe with his brother. After the endless torture since running from the platform, he finally thought things were all right.

"Uh, Garurumon's not going to last long."

TK opened his eyes to find the new voice. "Oh, uh... hey, Koji." He hadn't realized someone was standing next to him and his brother during their emotional reunion.

Koji was right, however. TyrantKabuterimon charged at Garurumon and swatted him away with its horn. Garurumon popped back onto its feet and lunged, but again TyrantKabuterimon tossed him aside. Its sights were still set on TK.

"Can't you do anything, Koji?" TK asked, teeth gritted.

With a heavy sigh, Koji replied, "I drove. I won't last a-" Both Matt and TK frowned at him until he pulled out his D-Tector. "Fine... Execute! Hybrid Spirit Evolution!" Beowolfmon appeared and stood in TyrantKabuterimon's way. "Beo Saber!"

TyrantKabuterimon stood in place as the attack bounced off him. It kept moving forward, slashing at Beowolfmon, who resisted as long as he could before the force overwhelmed him and a claw slammed him to the ground. Only Matt and TK remained.

"Get behind me," Matt said, stepping in front of TK. The younger brother did, clutching the back of Matt's shoulders and cowering.

The vibrations picked up again, now hitting both of them. Both clutched their heads, resisting the urge to fall to their knees. Both boys heard the subconscious voice: "I should destroy both of you. How dare you desert him? The power of the Digimon you have enslaved should have led to a new glorious era. His destruction will not go unpunished. His bidding will still be completed!" TyrantKabuterimon reared back, horn aimed at Matt's chest. He charged ahead.

"Gotcha!" RaptorSparrowmon picked it out of the air and flew up to the sky, never letting TyrantKabuterimon out of its grasp. Matt and TK lost sight of her, but backed away nonetheless, wondering if they should make a run for it.

"Raptor Grapple!" They heard her cry from above, diving straight down at full speed. Now the brothers took cover, diving into the pond as RaptorSparrowmon slammed TyrantKabuterimon straight into the ground, sending dirt flying over their heads and leaving a crater.

"Who's that?" TK asked as he shimmied water out of his hair.

Matt didn't answer. He was busy looking for it. RaptorSparrowmon had no rider, but Hououmon had two. Sora and Nene each sat at one of its feet. Both were smirking.

"She told you she was going to protect TK," said Sora.

As Matt looked at both of them and thought about diving underwater. TK patted his shoulder and smiled. "And here I thought I was in trouble."

"Hey, he's still not dead," Koji muttered, taking labored strides toward the pond. TyrantKabuterimon was in the middle of a hole and struggling, but its data was still very much intact. "Unless you've got a-"

"Lightning Joust!" Gallantmon returned, diving from atop the waterfall, its chrome digizoid lance striking against the helpless TyrantKabuterimon's shell. He kept the force up, finally exposing cracks. All at once, he penetrated the shell, bursting through and obliterating the Digimon as the lance drove through its entire body.

With the job done, Takato and Guilmon separated. The tamer smiled at Matt and TK as Nene and Sora jumped off to pull them out of the pond. Takato grinned. "So, how was that?"

Koji folded his arms and rolled his eyes, muttering, "Fine, I won't kill you."

After retrieving Matt, Nene kept holding his hands. She took a deep breath. "Matt?" she asked.

One look into her eyes made Matt recoil. He looked back, but darted between her and TK. TK was smiling, but Sora frowned. Matt lowered his head, let go of her hands and walked up to Takato and Koji.

"We'd better get back to the castle," he mumbled.

Nene narrowed her eyes at him, shook her head, then turned to Sora. Now she was smiling.

"Right?!" Sora said, eyebrows raised. Nene chuckled back.

* * *

Mikey Kudo was having second doubts about the plan, but had to admit he liked it when Koichi first relayed it to Takuya. Between Jeremy and Dorulumon, Mikey had enough contacts familiar with the platform's construction to learn about the extra supply rooms bolstered with secure doors. This was for surplus storage, some of which was for sensitive items like servers, radios and a cache of protective armor that could be used if the train needed to be deployed for a response team mission. The rooms were also a perfect place to hide Patamon.

If anybody did infiltrate the station, they'd be lured out by TK and his escorts using the tunnel to escape. Patamon remained secure, although Mikey questioned if TK would be safe on his own. He struggled to shake the thought off. He and Takuya were responsible for getting back to Patamon.

Once the light from the entrance gave out, Mikey asked, "Don't suppose you brought a flashlight?" Takuya responded by turning into Agunimon and illuminating the tunnel with his fire. "That works too."

They marched along the tracks in silence, Mikey asked, "So is Tai really capable of stopping Algomon? I haven't seen WarGreymon fight since Quartzmon."

"I hope not," Agunimon muttered.

"What? But if he doesn't-"

Agunimon grunted. "Sorry. I just... I don't know. It's just that we couldn't, you know? And if he can..."

Mikey smirked. "Well, I guess we'd better get up there quick so he can't say he did it alone."

The spirit of fire didn't respond, but he did jog faster. Mikey reloaded Dorulumon and jumped on his back to hitch a ride. Now Agunimon had to run to keep up.

They reached the platform quickly, but stopped before climbing up. As Mikey pulled Dorulumon back, Agunimon looked around. None of the doors had been disturbed except the one at the entrance. They could hear a battle outside, including a flurry of bullets and a violent blow to the mountain itself. The light from the entrance increased in size, then became obscured as a figure entered. Algomon creeped onto the platform and spread his vines everywhere.

"Dammit!" Agunimon spat. Too loud, unfortunately, as Algomon saw him and fired a round of energy bullets, sending both Agunimon and Mikey scrambling for cover.

"Reload- Shoutmon!" Mikey commanded. He turned to survey how much power he'd need, not that he'd have enough without Christopher, but only saw Algomon's vines wrapped around every door in the station. With one tug, they were all off- hunks of metal clanging across the room and hinges flying everywhere.

Patamon didn't wait for the vines to find him. He flew out of the open doorway, evading all the vines in his path, desperate for protection. Shoutmon jumped in front of him, slashing at the vines with his microphone. Patamon hid behind Mikey.

Algomon jumped off the platform and landed on the track, his giant legs smashing and warping the rail. His sights were fixed on Patamon and stepped towards him. Agunimon was the first line of defense and didn't have enough time to evolve fully. He settled for the next best thing: "Slide Evolution! BurningGreymon!"

He hacked away the first vines fired his way, then released the fires within him. This was always one of the most painful things Takuya ever did as a Digimon; he felt the flames against his body scorch him as he fought to keep them under his command. With Algomon drawing near he sent the inferno bursting forward. "Wildfire Tsunami!"

The first waves connected, incinerating the most threatening vines and knocking Algomon aside. It also revealed WarGreymon spiraling towards him at high speeds, only grazing Algomon but spinning uncontrollably into BurningGreymon. They collided, sending both crashing to the ground. Stray fire shot everywhere and forced Shoutmon and Mikey to take cover.

Algomon brushed it off and took a vine-assisted leap over both Takuya and Koromon writhing on the floor. One punch sent Shoutmon into the tunnel wall, knocking him out.

Tai saw everything as he chased WarGreymon into the station. After the collision, after watching his partner brought down in a fiery explosion, he leaped off the platform, planted his feet against the mangled track and tackled Takuya.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Tai pinned him to the ground, clutching his shoulders. "Didn't you see him there?!"

Takuya needed a moment for his eyes to focus. Once they did, he saw Tai's enraged face and the exhaustion in his own through the goggles. Takuya shook off the sight, grabbed Tai's arms and pushed off. "No! What was he even doing?! I had him stopped!"

"Yeah, sure you did! Nothing can stop him!" Tai slammed him to the ground again, snarling. "This is your problem! You just do things! You never look!"

"You're the one who let him in here!" Takuya charged at him, rolling Tai onto his back. "At least I'm trying to do something!"

"Help!" Both Tai and Takuya heard Patamon's cry and looked down the tunnel. Mikey was down alongside his partner. Beyond them, Patamon struggled to free himself from the vines wrapped around his whole body. As Algomon drew closer, the eyes on each of his limbs started to glow. All of them shot beams into Patamon's eyes.

"No!" Tai shouted. He motioned to get up, but Takuya held him down. Tai had to watch as the vines fell off and Patamon hovered, now emitting a bright glow. So bright in fact that the rest of the tunnel seemed to darken. Then it shook. The overhead platform lights shattered as rocks and dirt fell from the ceiling on top of them. Takuya let go of Tai in order to cover his own head.

Tai forced himself to watch as Patamon's mouth snapped open and the light shot out in every direction, passing just over Tai's head. He turned to watch it fan out, completely surrounding them. He could no longer see the exit. As the light spread, he lost sight of the platform, then Algomon, then Mikey and Shoutmon, then Koromon and Takuya. Before he knew what was happening, he lost sight of himself.

The only thing in the sea of white was Patamon. In an instant, it all went black.

* * *

Joe Kido kept his eyes on the platform entrance, as he had since Tai and WarGreymon rushed in. The bright light and shaking inside was troubling, but he was in no position to actually do anything. WarGreymon had hit Algomon with everything he had, pummeling him with slashes and energy missiles alike. Imperialdramon even dropped down for a few licks once the aerial bombardment became manageable enough for Aquilamon to handle on her own. Nothing worked. Algomon got up every time, unfazed by the damage and ready to dish some out in return. One attack, one bad position offered enough cover for Algomon to sneak into the station.

"Well, we can't just look at it!" Terriermon ran past Joe into the station while Henry was still surveying the situation above their heads. The light acted as a force field, knocking Terriermon backward once he ran into it.

"I think that's all we can do right now," Joe muttered.

As the surviving Flybeemon eased off and dispersed peacefully above them, Henry said, "Well, that's over at least." He flagged down Davis and Ken aboard Imperialdramon. "You should be safe to split up." The dragon landed and reverted back to Veemon and Wormmon.

"Where's Tai?" Davis asked. Henry pointed to the station.

Ken recoiled at the light from within it. "Something tells me they got Patamon."

The light pulsed for a few moments and they heard one final rumble from the mountain before everything stopped. The glowing subsided and the entrance turned completely black before anyone saw the sheen of metal supports and the occasional brown of a wooden beam.

"Tai?!" Joe shouted into the station. There wasn't a response. At least the echo confirmed they could now enter. Not that he was in any hurry to.

It took a moment for Davis to step forward, handing Henry his radio. "Get everyone up to speed and make sure everyone's okay." The tamer nodded and stepped away from the door. Veemon was already sniffing inside of it. "Well, come on, Joe," Davis said.

Joe sighed. "I knew you'd say that." He secured Bukamon on his shoulder and followed Davis and Ken in. The light fixtures had blown and all they could make out were dying fires in each corner.

As Joe and Veemon called out for Tai again, Davis felt his way through the dark platform, his feet crunching on the shattered light fixtures. He found the supply room, cutting his hand on the jagged metal remnants of the door hinge. After wiping blood on his slacks, he felt around until he reached the flashlights, grabbing a pair and turning one on.

"Ken, catch," he said, tossing Ken a flashlight in the darkness. Ken caught it anyway. Together they scoped out the entire platform, only to find a few mangled security doors and dirt from above.

Keeping Wormmon close, Ken shined his light down onto the track. It was warped in front of him, covered in debris and still revealed nothing useful. He angled the flashlight to cover as much of the tunnel as he could. A little lifeless lump in the middle of the track was the only thing he spotted.

Veemon recognized it immediately. "Patamon!" he shouted, leaping off the platform and running up to him. Davis, Ken and Joe followed quickly.

"C'mon, buddy..." Veemon rocked Patamon's shoulder but got no reaction.

Ken gasped. "Is he..."

"He hasn't turned into data," Joe said, shooing Veemon away and checking for any injuries or vital signs. "He's alive..."

"Wait, I'm confused," said Davis as Joe scooped Patamon into his arms. "If he's still here, where's the big guy? And where's Tai?"

"What's that?" Ken said hurriedly, shining his light away from Patamon and farther down the tunnel. It sounded like insect wings. Joe pulled Patamon behind Ken as Davis pulled out his D3.

Thankfully, it was Kabuterimon, regular old Kabuterimon, arriving from the other side of the tunnel with Izzy, Mimi and Tanemon on board.

Izzy jumped off even before his partner came to a stop."What happened?" he asked, shuffling past Davis and Ken to see Patamon. He took Ken's flashlight and surveyed the orange Rookie up and down.

"Don't know," said Davis. "No Algomon. No Tai. Doesn't make any sense, does it?"

"What about Takuya and Mikey?" asked Mimi, still atop Kabuterimon. "They came in from our side." Davis waved his flashlight around, but there was no sign of them either.

Meanwhile, Izzy kept inspecting Patamon. "Are you thinking this has something to do with that extra data in him?" Joe asked.

"Yes, and there's really only one possibility where that data came from," Izzy replied.

Patamon's eyes flew open and he jerked upright, flapping his way out of Izzy's arm. He looked around frantically, calming somewhat when he saw his company. "Oh... hi Izzy," he said.

"Do you remember anything that happened?"

"Um..." Patamon looked around again. "I remember running from the monster. And Mikey tried to protect me. Then there was a big boom and now I'm here."

Izzy frowned, stepping away from the group and taking a few paces down the tunnel. Joe glanced at Patamon once before turning to him. "It's bad, isn't it?"

He stopped. Back still to the group, he said, "In his fully evolved form, Algomon has some ability to manipulate dimensions. If he was able to harness dimensional energy from another source, he may be able to travel to another world."

"Another world?!" Joe exclaimed.

"You mean like the human world?" Davis asked.

"Maybe," Izzy said, turning around. "In fact, it's entirely possible he's done this before."

"TK's dream!" Davis turned to Patamon, who frowned.

"But what does that have to do with me and TK?" Patamon asked. "I can't... whatever you said."

"You can as MagnaAngemon," Izzy walked back, holding his chin. "I bet that's how it happened."

Ken's mouth fell open. "Oh no, you don't mean..."

Izzy nodded. "That's where that data came from. All those years ago, on the day we lost him."

Joe gave a worried look at Patamon before saying the name: "Millenniummon."

"But... where are Tai and the others?" Mimi asked.

Izzy lowered his head. "Trapped wherever Algomon ended up." Shaking, he added, "If they're lucky."

* * *

Takuya Kanbara had a pounding headache and was sore everywhere. He didn't want to wake up, opening his eyes involuntarily and slamming them shut as soon as the light came in. Whatever had happened with Algomon and Patamon, it knocked him out before he could register it. Between the absolute silence and the brightness surrounding him, he knew he wasn't in the tunnel anymore. So he forced his eyes open, knowing whatever was going on, he was going to have to deal with it no matter how badly he needed to rest.

Once his eyes finally adjusted to the light, he found himself in a completely white room. Perhaps it was a cave: the floor wasn't level and made of smooth pebble. Blue accents glistened off the walls, providing enough contrast to identify a domed ceiling and a cold hearth on one end. Halfway between him and the hearth, Mikey and Shoutmon started to stir. On either side of Takuya, Tai and Koromon did the same. There was no exit.

Takuya forced himself up, his body fighting every step. He was next to the wall opposite the hallway and brushed his hand across it. The surface was uneven. If it was rock, erosion had smoothed it over. It didn't feel manmade, but it was too clean and too symmetrical to be natural. This place was somehow otherworldly.

By the time Takuya finished scoping out the room, Tai was on his knees and doing the same. He caught Takuya out of the corner of his eye and scoffed. "Well... we're out," he muttered. "Hope you're happy."

Takuya rubbed his eyes. "Oh, go to hell. You think I wanted this?"

Tai shrugged. "It's not the castle. Might not even be the same world. That's what you were looking for."

Clenching a fist, Takuya had to keep the tears in. "No! I just... wanted to be... doing something." Tai stood and faced Takuya, his sullen expression begging him to continue. "I can't just hide in a bubble. I need to be out there. Don't you get that?"

Tai shook his head. "Not here. Here... maybe if you're looking for something real. Maybe if you had a goal." He moved two steps toward Takuya. "Maybe if you knew what you were doing."

Takuya's fist shot up and connected with Tai's cheek instantly. Tai turned his head and took half a step back, but other than the new scowl on his face, he didn't react.

"Come on..." Takuya spat, his fists still up. Now his tears flowed uncontrollably. "You wanna pretend this is my fault? Fine! But-"

Before he could get any more out, Tai charged forward, grabbing Takuya's shoulders and shoving them against the wall. Pinning them in place, he snarled, "Eleven years... I just wanted to have a home. I put everything into it. Just to not have to worry about surviving and knowing my friends are safe. That's a lot to ask for here!"

Even with the pressure on his shoulders, Takuya still brought his hands up, clutching Tai's arms, trying to wrestle them away. "Well you got it! Let me have a turn!"

"We don't have it!" Tai pressed harder. "Look what happened! Ten years of work thrown away in a week! Because you think you're too good for it!" In one motion, he pulled Takuya forward and slammed him back, his head colliding with the white wall. "You know how this has to work! Whatever we do, we do it together!"

Takuya was exhausted, physically and mentally, wanting nothing more than to close his eyes either to sleep or cry. His project had blown up in his face, he had spent the last day fighting or traveling, and now he was stranded in a foreign place with no way out. Yet he still found the strength to rip Tai's hands away and shove him back. "Together?! You and your suck-ups make all the decisions! That's not together!"

Tai charged at him again, this time met with Takuya's open hands. The two abandoned their words, grappling angrily with only the occasional grunt breaking the silence.

"Hey, knock it off!" Shoutmon tried to wedge his microphone between them, but it didn't budge either of them. Shoutmon grunted himself and called, "Mikey! Give me a hand here!" When he didn't get a response, he turned around.

Mikey stared at the empty hearth, his face expressionless and ignorant of Tai and Takuya's scuffling. Koromon had joined him. "What are you looking at?" the little Digimon asked.

"Who are you?" Mikey asked the wall. His question stopped Tai and Takuya, both stepping back to catch a look. But nobody was there.

After a quick glance to make sure Takuya didn't take a cheap shot, Tai approached Mikey. Koromon jumped into Tai's arms. When both of them stared at the hearth, they too became transfixed. As did Takuya when he joined them. Once all three boys were staring forward, the figure appeared and snapped them out of their trance.

It was a girl, who looked about nine or ten, with an aqua dress and pink hair with a large sheer bow on the back resembling butterfly wings. She eyed all three intently, but took deep breaths as her knees shook. With a quick exhale and a determined smile, she nodded and said, "Hi."

Mikey looked at Takuya and Tai, both with the same blank stare as him. "So who are you?"

She nodded repeatedly, bouncing on the balls of her feet. As if reading off a grocery list, she answered, "Well, let's see... I'm the master of creation and destruction... of heaven and earth... of life and death... and of light and darkness."

The three boys took a step back. The girl's smile grew. "It's an honor to finally meet you all," she said. "I'm Rhythm."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 25: "Sub-reality"**  
Confronted with one of the creators of the world, Mikey's faith in his theory is put to the test. Davis rallies for a chance to go after Tai, Takuya, and Mikey. The teams trying to rescue Zoe and Kazu near their goals.

 _"I can't do nothing. That doesn't work for me."_

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
One of the points of having a more passive setting was to allow every character's natural personality to come out rather than having everybody in crisis mode. Increased tensions change people, which can lead to more passionate, heated arguments (as seen with Tai and Takuya), but also more unity as everyone is more focused on the threat than each other. Like the sudden peace between Nene and Sora, some of the personal conflicts that may have risen again get suppressed because of what's going on. Koji knows he has to put up with Takato while Mimi almost certainly would have had an earful for Izzy had they reunited under calmer circumstances.

The Davis speech Gatomon was referring to was to the dark spore children, where he reassured them that they could be valuable without Digimon. This is followed by them getting Digimon.

Other than needing crucial ingredients like Armor digieggs, spirits, or DNA (Data Squad edition), all restrictions are off for digivolution in this world. Although their entrance to the Digital World was before Hououmon's debut in tri., we assume Sora's always had the ability to do it, and she has probably done it before.

There are two ways to explain Mimi's ability to digivolve Palmon to Mega without having done it before in her partner's current life. One is that the bond has still existed and has still gotten strong enough even if it wasn't feasible. The other is that Marcus did it once.

After introducing him in episode 7, I had to have some final appearance/contribution from Terriermech. Since he never ended up functional, this was the best way for him to go out!

Rhythm, like Algomon, appears in the Savers movie and there are a few hints that the two are linked. I could go on forever about the ditheistic nature of the world, but you're probably running off to watch the Savers movie so all I'll say is to note the differences in Rhythm's speech and Algomon's in episode 13.

NDwCX5rv4AA  
B01AOCIS1G


	26. 25- Sub-reality

**Neverworld**

 _Does anybody know? Is this real or no?_  
 _Welcome to my sub-reality._  
 _Does anybody know? Should I stay or go?_  
 _Welcome to my sub-reality._  
 _\- Dr. Noise, "Sub-reality"_

 **Episode 25**

Takato Matsuki wanted to speak up so badly. The group had just survived their ordeal with TyrantKabuterimon and were returning to the castle. They were too far out of range to hear news from elsewhere, but their part of the mission was a success and surely crucial. Yet nobody seemed to appreciate that. The nine of them (six human, three Digimon) walked in complete silence. Matt and Gabumon led the way while Nene and Sora (carrying Yokomon) followed, watching him carefully but not daring to engage him. Takato felt the same way about Koji.

Finally, Matt broke the silence, grumbling, "Sure we can't just fly back?"

With a snicker, Takato replied, "It was a long fight. The Digimon need to rest up. Being one is exhausting." He looked at everyone to catch the response. Nene and Sora nodded to themselves. Koji looked away scowling, but it least it wasn't a death glare. This was probably progress.

Feeling a pat on his shoulder, Takato heard TK sloshing up to him and Guilmon. "Hey, suppose I should thank you two for jumping in there and saving me and everything."

Hand on his neck, Takato blushed. "Oh, well... I mean Mikey steered us your way and Koji got us here so quick." He eyed Koji again. He didn't react.

Noting this, TK whispered, "Is this about what I think it is?"

Takato nodded. Lowering his voice, he replied, "Pretty sure he tried to throw me off a couple times on the ride down." TK nodded in understanding.

As the castle came into view and they made their final ascent, TK asked, "Hey, what happened to your goggles?"

Takato stopped. Koji and the others, and even Guilmon, went ahead. Slumping his shoulders, the tamer answered, "Oh, uh... haven't felt up to wearing them lately." He kept his eyes on Koji. "They're in my bag. I guess Cody has it."

TK snickered. "Cody... how appropriate."

Frowning, Takato glanced at TK. "You know, he's still pretty hurt about the thing with Suzie."

With a sad nod, TK replied, "Yeah. That hurts more than all the stuff we did to each other." He sighed. "You know... even when they hurt you, it's pretty painful to stay mad at the people you care about." He sighed. "Anyway, you look cooler with them on."

They completed the trip in silence. There was none of that inside, however, as everybody returning from their battles gathered in the hall. The conversations were full of happy reunions as the Isthmian team found their friends back home. Patamon flew into TK's arms and started crying. TK struggled not to.

"It was awful, TK..." he moaned. TK didn't ask for an explanation. He just held his partner.

The tension hanging in the air kept the room from being too loud. Everyone somehow knew some were missing. As the remaining officers discussed their options, Ken was left at the front of the room to stall.

After peeking over everyone's heads, Matt narrowed his eyes at Ken. "Where's Tai?" Ken and Wormmon looked at each other nervously, both looking back several times.

Finally, Ken pushed his fingers together and smiled nervously. "Uh... the officers are checking on the welfare of everybody who fought."

"What?!"

"Excuse me..." Ken retreated into the crowd. TK and Takato looked at each other, nodded, and followed him behind the stage.

"Do we have anything to say yet?" Ken asked the team.

Davis, Thomas, Henry, Izzy and Joe seemed to have reached a conclusion. They were just unhappy at the implications of it. "I suppose so," said Thomas. "There isn't a feasible alternative. Our best course of action is to trust them to have the ability to find a way out."

Izzy shook his head. "I suppose if anyone can do it, it's them."

"Just hope everyone understands," added Joe.

They dispersed, with Thomas and Henry climbing the stage to address the situation. Davis was supposed to join them, but he held back, head down.

Henry turned around and faced him. "You coming?"

"We could do that..." Davis muttered. He picked his head up and stared at the other two officers. "Or we could figure out a way to go in and pull them out." They blinked, unmoved. Davis raised his arms, now more boisterous. "Crazy idea, I know! Feel free to ignore me!"

"Davis, there are so many variables," Izzy explained. "Even if we could open a gate, there's no promise we'll be able to follow them." He sighed. "I know it's terrible, but we can't afford to lose anyone else."

"Well, if we get stuck, we'll just have to find a way out ourselves, right?"

"Who's we?" Henry asked, eyebrows narrowed. "Davis, I know you want to help them, but we don't know where they are. We can't throw you in blindly."

"Sure you can!" Davis noticed Takato and grinned. "Takato can come too!"

Takato's eyes widened and he leaned back, but he stood firm. "Um... sure! Where are we going?"

"No idea! But you know what?" Davis turned back to Henry. His grin remained, but now he shook his head. His eyes softened. "I can't do nothing. That... just don't work for me."

Thomas grimaced. "Davis, you understand we put a lot of thought into this."

"Well, you forgot one thing, Norstein: Tai's gone, so that means I'm in charge." His smile grew wilder. "As lieutenant commander, I insist."

* * *

Mikey Kudo felt his stomach twisting into knots. The theory sounded so simple in his head: their path to salvation and escaping the world came with destroying all of its creators. In his mind, they were all as vicious as Algomon, determined to inflict an eternity of endless suffering on all its inhabitants. Killing them meant liberation. At no point had he considered what to do if one of the gods of this world carried the form of a powerless little girl.

Takuya peered at Rhythm in disbelief. "Hold on... you're one of the creators? Like Algomon?"

She smiled. "Yeah. Algomon and I are the two creators of this space. The world you live in is a product of each of our separate visions and ideals."

"Um... no offense but from I've seen, your ideals are pretty nasty," Tai said.

"That's Algomon's influence," Rhythm replied with a nod. "His vision is one of darkness. Powerful forces perpetually feasting on the weak. He fed off the dark energy. Early on, he was so strong I could barely make any impression. The righteous Digimon I would put forward just weren't enough to keep his forces in check. I had to fight back."

"Fight back? How?" asked Shoutmon.

Rhythm's smile grew. "With all of you."

All of them recoiled. Mikey still felt sick. "So you're the one who pulled us all in here?"

"I am. You were my champions against the darkness," she said proudly. "And you've done so well."

"How did you..." Tai stopped, his mouth forming a sneer. "Wait, were you the one behind all those distortions going on before we got pulled in?"

"No, but they were very helpful," she explained. "They weakened the boundaries between worlds. Enough for me to pull in you and your friends. And by seeing them in your world I was able to reproduce them in others right around the same equivalent time." She chuckled. "I kept it more subtle though."

"So if you can pull us from home, can you send us back?" Takuya asked.

Rhythm paused before answering, "No." She watched the color drain from Takuya and Tai's faces. Mikey's had already gone. She looked down. "You're a part of this world now. It would take an immense amount of energy to leave it. Even more to control where you go. The only reason I was able to bring you here was because Algomon opened a gate. I can send you after him, but there's no telling which world he ended up in."

"So... there's no way home?" Takuya refused to look up.

"This is your home now. And I need you to keep defending it."

"Or... we can destroy it," Mikey muttered, drawing looks from everyone. He picked his head up. "If this world is keeping everyone from going home, what does destroying it do?"

Rhythm stepped back, frowning. She didn't have an answer.

"That's..." Takuya sighed. "We can't do that anymore though. Algomon came back to life."

Mikey turned to him. "Didn't you hear what Izzy said? Algomon might still be dead. That's why we can't kill him." He turned to Rhythm. "Right?"

She nodded slowly. "I'm afraid so." Flashing a slight grin, she said, "I was getting to that."

"So..." He took a deep, unsettled breath. "Destroying the creators destroys the world."

Tai and Takuya didn't understand at first. When they did, it hit like lightning. Tai stared at Mikey. Takuya stared at Rhythm. She leaned back, darting her eyes between the three.

"Dude, you can't just..." Takuya mumbled. He didn't even want to say it.

Mikey's eyes stayed on Rhythm. It was a sickening thought indeed. "I promised myself I'd find a way to get us out of there. I swore I'd try to save everybody." He scanned the little girl up and down. "Is this how we have to do it?" Rhythm gasped, taking steps back, eyes filling with fear.

"Mikey?! Can you hear yourself?! She's a kid!"

"She looks like a kid." Mikey asked Rhythm, "Are you even human?"

"Well, no, but..." Her hands shook. "No, this isn't right. You're here to help me."

"You didn't ask us. You stole us."

"But that's how it always works, isn't it?" Tai mumbled. "We're chosen."

"But we also got to go home when the job's done." Mikey shook his head at Rhythm, now backing all the way to the far wall. "You trapped us. So I need to do whatever it takes to help us escape."

"Dude, are you even sure that'll work?" Takuya asked. "You think this world will just go away and we'll end up back home like nothing happened?"

"It'll go away," Rhythm stammered, not taking her eyes off Mikey. "The world can't exist without either of us." She blinked. "But that doesn't mean you go home. I... I don't know what would happen to you."

Mikey thought for a moment, then answered, "Better than being stuck forever."

"Is it?" Tai asked. "Mikey, seriously, think about this."

"Tai, you think about it!" Mikey turned to the other two, gesturing towards Rhythm. "Why is this place here? Why did they make it?" His head jolted towards her. "What's the point of all this?"

Rhythm shook her head. "I don't know! Why does your world exist? Or theirs? They just do."

Mikey closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths before he replied, "Well, we want to go back to ours." His eyes flew open and he barked, "Shoutmon?"

Shoutmon didn't move. He felt Tai and Takuya's eyes on him as he stared at Rhythm. "I..." He dropped his microphone stand. "Sorry, Mikey, this is too much for me." Koromon stared up at him in horror.

Mikey frowned at his Digimon, disappointed but eventually returning a solemn nod. He looked at Takuya and Tai again. Takuya's entire body shook as he bared his teeth at Mikey. Tai only stared back, no expression on his face. His slow, heavy breathing was the only sign of his trepidation. Mikey let out a long, deep exhale and said, "We may never get another chance to do this."

He turned to Rhythm. She didn't run, or try to hide behind the others. Even as he took slow, shaky steps towards her, she held her ground. All the same, her quivering frame and the trickle of tears gave her away.

"You... you understand, right?" Mikey said, his voice raspy as he stood in front of her. He had his own set of tears. He needed to breathe himself before continuing. "This is about my friends. This is about rescuing them. Everybody back there... I need to save them. This is for all of them..."

After balling his hands into fists, they unfolded, unsteadily wrapping around Rhythm's neck. "This is... for Angie..." he whispered.

Rhythm closed her eyes as Mikey's thumbs felt around, finally settling in over the girl's throat. They still shook. His breath still labored.

Mikey closed his eyes as he sobbed. "I... can't turn my back on them."

* * *

Davis Motomiya had no idea what Thomas and Izzy were doing, but all that mattered to him was that they were doing it. With the train station ruined, they filled the hall with every piece of diagnostic equipment they could bring over from medical. They scanned and poked Patamon with every tool that wouldn't harm him, trying to find some way to repeat the process.

Their dour faces shouldn't have instilled any confidence. Davis didn't care. "Thanks for jumping in with me, Takato," he said as the two watched from the side with their partners. They weren't the only ones. Half the castle lingered around them.

Takato chuckled to himself. "Well, sure. I mean if it happened to any of us, I'm sure Tai would be the first to help." Davis patted him on the shoulder.

"So Thomas says you two are crazy enough to try to rescue those three?" Marcus and Agumon joined them.

Davis grinned. "Yep. No talking me out of it."

"Talk you out of it? I'm going with you!" Marcus cracked his knuckles. "No way you two are fighting without me."

"Yeah, now we're talking! Three goggleheads saving the other three goggleheads."

"Or six goggleheads getting lost forever," Takato said. "One of the two."

Davis smirked. After eyeing his two companions, he raised an eyebrow. "Seriously, you two need to put your goggles back on."

"Oh..." Takato's smile faded instantly. "To be honest, I don't know if it's right to be wearing them anymore. I mean, compared to you guys..."

"Hey, no..." Davis's face fell. He put an arm around Takato's shoulder. "Listen, Takato, I didn't ask you to do this out of the blue. It's really dangerous and they still don't know if we'll make it back." Gently shaking Takato, he continued, "I asked you because I know you're strong enough to help and because I knew you'd say yes anyway. You didn't even hesitate." He pushed Takato to his feet. "Now go get 'em."

Takato looked back at him as the smile returned. It spread to Takato's face as well. Davis was right; Takato didn't think twice before deciding to help. Not because it was an order from an officer or a favor for a digidestined. Takato knew it was the only option, foolish as it was, and wanted to be a part of it. He left to find his bag.

Marcus was next, but he was already waving Davis down. "Don't look at me. It's out of my hands."

Davis didn't push further. Patamon digivolving into Angemon in the middle of the hall distracted him. He and Veemon approached TK, looking at his Champion partner with some trepidation. "Guys, I don't know if I can get any more out of him. Don't you need MagnaAngemon?" TK said.

"We wouldn't actually use his gate attack," Thomas explained. "But if we can find a way to open anything through him, it'll be less of a strain on Patamon if he's in a higher form."

"So we're good to go then?" Davis asked.

"Hardly," Ken said, joining him and TK. "We have no way to open a gate, much less in a way that could go after Algomon. I know you and Takato want to-"

"Me, Takato- and Marcus now!" Davis interrupted, smiling.

"Hey Davis, Ken should go too!" Veemon exclaimed.

"Hey, yeah, that way we'll have Imperialdramon! Good call!"

Ken frowned. "Davis, you didn't hear me."

"Is that a no?" Davis was still grinning.

Looking away, Ken sighed. "In the event they actually figure out a way in... sure."

"Great!"

They watched Thomas and Izzy continue working, not that there was real work being done. Most of it was them throwing dissatisfied looks at Angemon and shooting down each other's suggestions. Nobody noticed TK look over his shoulder, then excuse himself.

Several minutes later, Takato arrived alongside Cody. The goggles had returned. "Any progress?" Cody asked.

Izzy shook his head. "I don't know why this is so disappointing. We know we can't open gates. We never could."

"Even with a D3?"

"Already tried with TK's. If they couldn't open a gate back home, why would they work here?"

"If they couldn't..." Cody repeated, narrowing his eyes at Izzy.

Izzy looked over at him. "Remember? The D3s can't do that anymore. We're as unrestricted as ever as far as digivolution, but hardware is hardware."

"So if you had one that worked again..."

"If we did, we might be able to work something out."

Cody looked at Takato, then slowly approached Izzy. Along the way, he pulled out his D3. Izzy raised an eyebrow. "They stopped working."

As he held it out, Cody's mouth twitched slightly as he mumbled, "Spoilers."

"Izzy?" Angemon watched Cody raise the D3. "I can feel something. It's responding."

"Prodigious!" Izzy jumped up. "Davis! Get your team over here! Everybody else stay back!" It took a minute or so for some calibrations on his computer, but once he finished Izzy directed Cody to a position several feet in front of Angemon. Davis, Takato, Marcus, Ken and their partners stood next to him.

"Wait!" TK shouted, rushing in. "This won't hurt him?"

"No promises," Thomas said, reading some diagnostics. "But it won't kill him."

TK stood next to Cody, who tried to pretend he wasn't. There was an awkward silence as they waited for the next cue from Izzy. In the meantime, TK looked across the line, took a deep breath, then walked over and handed Marcus his goggles.

"Good luck," he muttered. Marcus opened his mouth, but nothing came out. In the end, he only returned a swift nod and slipped them on. Only when TK returned to his post did Marcus exhale in relief.

"And you too," TK whispered to Cody.

"Thanks," Cody replied. "Hope it doesn't hurt too much."

"Okay!" Izzy raised a hand. "It's showtime."

"Please don't say that," muttered Thomas.

Cody raised his D3 towards Angemon, this time with his full concentration. Angemon winced as both he and the D3 started to glow. He rose into the air as the glow spread. Izzy ushered everyone away. Everyone except the four humans and their Digimon, who charged into the light and kept running until it all went dark.

"It worked..." Davis heard Takato before he saw anything. He didn't remember falling over or passing out, but he was on the ground. It felt like concrete. He opened his eyes and realized he was outside on a street. He even saw the long shadows from a setting sun. If not for the silence surrounding him, he would have thought it was a city in the human world.

"Davis... get up..." Veemon nudged him, helping him to his feet as the other Digimon did the same for their partners. Any excitement over being out of the Digital World died instantly.

They were in the human world and it was in a city. Somewhere in Japan even, but Algomon had gotten there first. Vines covered everything from cars to signposts to entire skyscrapers. Pods hung everywhere, connected to each other and the vines like neurons. There were no other people in sight.

The first noise came from the whirring blades of a helicopter overhead. They saw it soar over a building, and even heard more on the way. Just as Davis thought to wave at it, he saw the vine lash out, snatching its tail, and pulling it straight out of the air. They braced themselves for the crash, but it never came. Instead, the vine continued stretching, connecting to a distant department store. A large pod appeared where the helicopter had been.

"Pepper Breath!" All of them jumped and turned around when they heard Agumon's attack. He and Guilmon were fending off the rush of vines heading in their direction.

Finally, Marcus pointed out the origin point: Algomon stood atop a building, his vines surrounding him and stretching everywhere.

"This is bad..." Ken found a pod hanging low enough and close enough for him to investigate. He peered into it and winced when he saw the woman inside. "I found all the people."

"Okay then..." Marcus stepped forward, Agumon at his side. He stared up at Algomon and pounded his fists. They had no idea where they were or whose world it was. They just knew it needed saving. "It's fightin' time," he muttered.

* * *

Takuya Kanbara's heart raced as Mikey clutched Rhythm's neck. Enough pressure would kill the girl and destroy the Digital World. Takuya and Tai couldn't just watch this happen, could they? The idea that Mikey was even capable of it sickened Takuya. If true, that made Mikey dangerous, making Takuya afraid to intervene. But he had to do something.

"Mikey, stop! What are you doing?!" he shouted. Mikey didn't pull his hands away.

Rhythm didn't struggle, but her eyes were closed and she took short, heavy breaths, unsure if each would be the last. "I... just... needed your help," she gasped.

Turning back to Tai, Takuya was frantic. "We've got to do something, right?" Tai's lip quivered as he stared at Mikey. Takuya wasn't sure Tai heard him.

Tired of waiting, Takuya took a step towards Mikey. He almost burst into a run until Tai grabbed his shoulder and said, "Wait."

"Wait?!" Takuya spun around and clutched Tai's arm. "Tai, he's gonna kill her!" Tai looked right through Takuya. "Tai!" Now Takuya squeezed. "For god's sake! Tai, of all the times to sit back and watch...!"

But Tai didn't budge and continued to ignore Takuya, instead staring at Mikey and Rhythm. His eyes didn't waver. They didn't panic. They just observed. They made Takuya surrender, releasing Tai and observing himself, even though he knew what needed to happen and felt compelled to ensure it.

A minute of tense silence broke when Mikey gasped repeatedly. His hands shook, but not because they were tightening. In fact, they loosened and slowly pulled apart. Mikey took two unbalanced steps backwards, fell to his knees, and violently vomited on the floor. Rhythm rubbed her neck and watched Mikey as he tried to stand. He failed, falling to the ground and clutching his head.

Takuya turned to Tai, narrowing his eyebrows. "Really? You knew he wouldn't go through with it?"

"No. I didn't," Tai replied. He sighed. "But I wouldn't be able to look at him again if I didn't know for sure."

Tai began to approach Mikey, the intent to offer some sort of reassurance, but Shoutmon beat him to it. "Is this because you couldn't go through with it or because you almost did?" the Digimon asked.

"I..." Mikey's voice was so raspy and his breathing so thick he barely got the words out. "I don't know."

"Well, for my money you made the right call." As he patted Mikey's back, Shoutmon turned to Rhythm. His voice instantly changed to reflect a true commander: "But we still need answers."

"Of course," Rhythm said, nodding, her head to the ground. She looked up at Tai and Takuya. "Unless either of you..." Takuya shook his head. Tai only stared back. "Good."

She took a few steps towards Tai, careful to steer clear of Mikey and Shoutmon. The tenor in her voice started to return. "Fact is, Algomon tried this before. Ever since you came and started interfering with what he considers the natural order, he's hated humans. Your battle with Millenniummon let him and a small army into one of your worlds. I was able to follow him in. Marcus and Agumon helped me stop him."

"So that dream TK had about them was real?" Tai asked.

"I guess." Rhythm shrugged. "He wasn't there. But if his partner absorbed some of Millenniummon's data, maybe he saw it."

Takuya turned to Tai. "You'd think Marcus would have told us about that."

"I doubt he'd remember. Or even Agumon." Rhythm looked down and lost herself in a sad smile before picking up again. "A couple visitors from another dimension dropping in and messing around with everything? A reality can plaster up weird little cracks like us if we don't stay long. I'm sure you've got your share of anomalies you don't remember."

"How did you deal with him then?" Takuya asked.

"Agumon killed him." Anticipating the next question, she added, "Since we aren't creators in that world, he could be reborn like all the other Digimon who die there. The world determines what happens."

Her eyes steeled and she stared past Tai and Takuya. "But we made this world and can still influence it. Us dying here is unnatural. It's like a ship without a captain. His death took it off course."

Takuya folded his arms. "Well if he's dead, why's he still running around?"

"I think he sacrificed Primary Village to re-animate his body," she answered, frowning. "His hatred of humans survived one death. He spent all this time growing stronger, instigating battles and feeding off the dark energy from them. And he must have sensed Millenniummon's data in your friends. He wanted to attack the human world again. For all that work, why should another death stop him?"

"If killing him doesn't work, what do we do?" Tai asked.

"Well, first we go into whatever world he landed in and find a way to pull him out. After that..." Rhythm looked away and hesitated for a long time. Biting her lip, she said, "Then it gets tricky." Her face beamed again as she returned to Tai and Takuya. "But one thing at a time!"

"Gonna be hard enough to do the one thing if we can't bring him down," said Shoutmon. He eyed Tai and Takuya. "Plus these two can't stand each other and Mikey's broken."

"Don't worry about us. We can fake it," Takuya said, glancing at Tai and receiving a nod of support. "I'm more worried about Mikey."

Mikey was still hunched over on the floor, arms over his face. Once the conversation with Rhythm faded, they realized he had been mumbling the whole time: "I just want to help. I just want to save us. But I can't do it."

"That's because you can't turn on her either," said Tai. "I know we didn't ask to come here, but she needed us. And we have a job to do."

"You can't save everybody, Mikey," Shoutmon said, folding his arms. "Believe me, I had to make some tough calls after you left. Not everyone's happy. Not everyone's doing great. It's a hell of a lot better than the Bagra Army being in charge, but there are still problems I can't fix."

Mikey lowered his arms, slowly rising to his feet. He turned his weary eyes toward Shoutmon, then to Takuya and Tai. He didn't dare face Rhythm. "But who saves all of us?" he asked.

Tai narrowed an eye at him. Takuya lowered his head. Mikey continued, "If we can't do this, we'll never be able to go home. Are you okay with that?"

"We might not get home even if we could," Tai said. "Maybe we're just destroyed with the rest of the world." He turned to Rhythm. "Are we even really here? Davis said I never left. Are we just copies?"

Rhythm grinned back. "Maybe the one back home is the copy. Why go down that road? Here you're real."

Tai shook his head and walked up to Mikey. "Well, we won't last very long if we can't deal with this guy. C'mon, Mikey. We don't get saved. We fix our own problems."

Mikey returned a slow nod and walked up to the hearth next to Rhythm. One glance at her brought tears to his eyes. He faced the wall. His hands still shook.

As Shoutmon joined him, Koromon jumped on Tai's shoulder. Before heading to the hearth, Tai looked over his shoulder. Takuya was still waiting. "Don't think I'm done with you," Tai said.

"Come on," Takuya spat. He looked at the ground. "Everything I worked for just blew up. I feel like I've been fighting nonstop for two days. I drove away Zoe and I still don't know if she's okay." He choked up. "And now I find out there was no way out after all?" He shook his head. "Leave me alone."

"No," replied Tai. "We survive this. Then we talk." He walked up to the hearth and stood next to Mikey. Takuya fought off tears before joining him.

Once they were all next to the wall, they vanished.

* * *

Jeremy Tsurgi kept his eyes peeled on the ground while balancing on Nefertimon's back. He didn't want to admit he was getting tired, and he saw no signs of Zoe's whereabouts. He knew joining Kari on this crazy quest was the right, noble thing to do. But hours in he already felt his resolve fading.

"How much longer are we going to look?" he asked. Kari didn't answer.

He still couldn't decide if he was being heroic or foolish. Zoe had broken his heart for a terrible reason, lashing out when he tried to explain this. Jeremy spent much of the week venting, demonizing her to anyone willing to listen. He pretended he was better off without her and said he'd never run back even after she grasped how bad a choice it was. He didn't expect her to actually realize her mistake and take such drastic action to undo it. Things usually didn't work like that.

If he was able to help save someone from mortal peril, of course he would volunteer. But Kari asked Jeremy for a reason, and surely not because of his non-existent Digimon partner. He had been closest to Zoe, and presumably would be the one most invested in her rescue. He still wondered if he should have been. If the castle weren't under attack, should someone else have taken his place?

Through his thoughts he caught himself looking up at the air. It was nice to look at something different for a moment, but he returned to the task quickly. He still didn't know what to look for, or if they were missing something sticking this close to the tracks. They already had to veer off course and hide once to avoid Algomon's army. What if Zoe had to do the same thing?

Kari had one eye on the ground and one on the map loaded into her D-Terminal. Staring ahead, she told her partner, "Land here, please."

Only after Nefertimon began her descent did Jeremy see the landmass in front of them. The rocky hill in the middle of nowhere seemed like an arbitrary place to land until he saw the tunnel entrance. He wasn't privy to all the details, but he had a good hunch where they were.

Jeremy hopped off the Armor Digimon first, extending a hand to help Kari off, which she accepted, smiling in appreciation. "Please tell me this isn't where I think it is," he said.

"It's the only place where we tunneled, so..." Kari sighed. "If they caught her, maybe they brought her back here."

"So we're going to barge into this guy's home base with _one_ Digimon?! And we don't even know if she's in there?"

"After what they did to Patamon and Gabumon, they're in trouble with just one," said the reverted Gatomon.

Kari slowly approached the tunnel. "Let's look around and see how bad it is. If it's too dangerous or there's no sign of her, we'll make camp and head home tomorrow."

Jeremy looked around. "Make camp? We didn't bring anything for making camp!"

She turned back and smiled. "I brought you. Come on."

Thankfully, a strange green glow offered just enough light for them to get through the tunnel. Jeremy still complained about the lack of flashlights. The tunnel opened up into the cave, and all the dead vines and vegetation littering the floor inside it. They stopped to listen for any company but heard nothing. Kari exhaled and started looking around.

At first they stayed close to the track, stalling as long as they could before going near the pyramid. It wasn't long before Gatomon made the discovery. "Kari!" she shouted, drawing her over. She pointed at the opened bag on the ground and the half-eaten sandwich next to it. "Is this hers?"

"I don't know..." Jeremy bent down nearby, frowning. "But this is." He picked up her D-Tector.

As Jeremy tried to fiddle with it for anything useful, Kari approached the pyramid. Gatomon silently walked up to her partner and took her hand. Kari nodded and they marched ahead. Jeremy pocketed the D-Tector and followed them.

Along the way to the pyramid, Jeremy ducked under a low tree branch. He snapped it off and took it with him.

The three of them climbed the brittle vines, finding the entrance halfway up. Kari slipped and fell in, grabbing Gatomon who slid down with her. Jeremy took a deep breath and jumped in after her.

He found Kari on one knee, rubbing her other one. Jeremy landed on his rear end but popped up quickly. "You okay?"

She winced, but forced herself up. "Maybe I should have changed out of my uniform."

They walked briskly through the first hallway and into the first chamber. Jeremy marched on ahead, but Kari stopped and said, "Hold on, Henry said something about this room having-"

But Jeremy had already stepped on the plate. The wall slid open and revealed a pair of Yanmamon. Instantly, both of them swung their tails around and fired energy arrows at the intruders, sending the three scrambling.

"Lightning Paw!" Gatomon planted her back feet and leaped at the nearest opponent, swatting it to the floor. It got back up, but it was little more than a plaything for the feline.

The second, however, had a free shot at Jeremy and took it. Jeremy swung back with his stick, but Yanmamon flipped in midair and lashed out with his tail, slicing his arm open. While he took a knee and clutched the injury, Yanmamon charged at Kari with a biting attack. She barely avoided it, rolling out of the way but trapping herself in a corner. Its beam of electricity struck her shoulder and she fell to the ground.

She was helpless as the green dragonfly bared its teeth and flew in for the kill. But with a ferocious scream, Jeremy ran in from behind, swinging the stick overhead with two hands, striking the Yanmamon and knocking it down.

"Are you all right?" he asked, extending a blood-soaked hand towards her. She looked at him, breathless, and took it. He pulled her away from the stunned opponent.

"Lightning Kick!" Gatomon sent hers crashing against the wall in the same corner. She turned to her partner. "Now, Kari!"

Kari struggled to shift her D3 to an arm that wasn't pulsing with electricity, but he held it up and made Gatomon digivolve.

"Heaven's Charm!" Angewomon's attack finished off the two bugs. There was no celebration.

Angewomon helped Kari tear a sleeve off her blazer- both to make sure her arm still functioned and to wrap the cloth around Jeremy's. With the makeshift bandage in place, the two raced through the rest of the pyramid to the lowest, largest chamber. They stopped before entering, only proceeding after confirming it was empty. The green tube was the only thing inside. Angewomon and Jeremy rushed to clear off the vines covering it and the thin outer film.

They struggled to pull Zoe out. The gel inside numbed their arms on contact. The three had to synchronize their effort, each reaching in quickly, grabbing a limb (in Angewomon's case, Zoe's head) and pulling her out in one motion. They succeeded in sitting her up, allowing Angewomon to clutch her torso and drag her the rest of the way out.

"Zoe?" Jeremy and Kari both asked as the captive stirred. Once out of the gel, her consciousness returned quickly. She struggled to open her eyes, only seeing shapes at first, but in time they came into focus and settled on the two people in front of her. She saw Kari smile.

Instantly, she responded, shooting forward and pulling both of them into a hug. "You… you guys..." her voice was still uneven, but her tears worked.

Kari's did too. "We were so worried about you." She wiped her eyes and turned to Jeremy. "Right?"

Jeremy stared back, his mouth hanging open. He wasn't crying. He pulled away, removing his arm from Zoe's back. Zoe kept hers on his, in fact taking her other arm off Kari and lunging forward, pulling him into a long kiss.

He backed away again, still holding her but staring into her eyes and frowning. No matter how relieved he was to see her safe, he couldn't just forgive everything that easily, right?

Through her tears, she saw his face. Hers fell. "Jeremy...?" she mumbled.

That was all it took. It was how the whole thing started: he wanted to see her happy. This time, he knew he could do something about that. The smile crept onto his face as he shook his head. "Oh, who am I kidding?" He leaned forward and pulled her back for another kiss. This one was deeper. This one lasted.

Angewomon nudged Kari and pointed to the exit. Kari nodded, but did nothing to interrupt the pair. At some point she knew she'd have to in case there were other guards lurking around, but she couldn't yet. She was too happy.

* * *

Tai Kamiya opened his eyes and found himself in another world. This was certainly the human world, but there was no way to tell which one. The devastation from Algomon made the generic city block unrecognizable, especially at dusk. Tai shivered at the sight of vines and pods taking over, but looking around let him register that Takuya, Mikey, Rhythm, Koromon and Shoutmon had made the trip with him. That occupied him long enough to miss the vines shooting towards them. Now they were unavoidable.

Gallantmon jumped in front of them and blocked them with his shield. Tai sighed in relief, then shouted, "Thanks, Takato!"

"Why's Takato here?" Takuya turned to Rhythm.

Despite her narrowed eyes, she was smiling. "Because humans never stop surprising me."

"You'd better fall back!" Gallantmon shouted. "It's not safe for humans here."

They did, backing away and eventually following the shouts from Davis and Marcus. Along the way, they saw ShineGreymon fighting, and beating, Algomon in the distance. Even then Shoutmon had to swat down a few vines along the way. They found the others holed up behind a delivery truck rolled on its side. Paildramon shot down any vines threatening them.

Davis was on guard at first, but broke into a big smile. "Hey, you guys are here!"

"We were afraid we ended up in the wrong world," Ken added.

Tai ducked down alongside Davis. "You came after us?"

"What, did you think we were going to forget about you?" Davis watched Rhythm sit at the corner, taking long looks at Algomon. "Who's she?"

"We'll explain later," said Takuya. "Need us in there?"

Marcus stood and joined Rhythm in peeking around the truck. "Knock yourself out. Takato and I have been wailing on it for a while. Damn thing keeps getting up."

Takuya nodded, pulling out his D-Tector. He paused, staring at Tai for a moment, before heaving a sigh and shouting, "Execute! Fusion Evolution!" Aldamon flew in to help ShineGreymon. Mikey ducked behind Ken without a word.

Looking down at Rhythm, Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Hey... you look familiar."

Rhythm turned around and looked up into Marcus's eyes. An eager smile grew. "Do I?"

He stared at her for a while before shaking his head. "I don't know. You probably remind me of one of the girls from Kristy's stupid slumber parties." Rhythm frowned and turned back to the battle.

Tai ordered Koromon to digivolve to Agumon so he'd be ready. "So whose world are we in?"

"What, you think we had a chance to sightsee?!" Marcus fired back. "We've been a bit busy!"

"Well, aren't there any clues? Our world has an agency that keeps tabs on all this stuff."

"Yeah, so does mine! They don't pay enough."

"Takato's does too, actually," Davis added. "That doesn't help."

"Hey..." Mikey stared at a nearby pod. His voice was still low. "Do those pods have people in them? Shouldn't we get them out?"

Ken shook his head. "We already talked about it. There's too many and if we take them out they might be in even more danger. They're protected in there."

Suddenly, energy missiles struck the tarp on the truck protecting them and it burst into flames, forcing everyone away and out in the open. Distancing themselves from the wreck, they saw Gallantmon on his back halfway between them and Algomon. "Okay, how about we give Takato a break?" Tai said to Agumon. He held up his digivice and his partner warp digivolved to WarGreymon and shot into the battle. Gallantmon took the hint, split apart and Takato and Guilmon dragged themselves back.

"Atomic Inferno!" Aldamon's repeated fireball blast kept Algomon from attacking them further. WarGreymon dove in, slashing at him, severing a number of vines and knocking him down. In time Algomon got right back to his feet and kept attacking.

Tai was ready to tear his hair out. "This is ridiculous!" He turned to Rhythm. "You really have no ideas?"

Rhythm shook her head. "I'm sorry. If you could incapacitate him without killing him, that might buy you enough time to get him home. But I don't know if there's a way to do that in his current state."

Between Guilmon, Paildramon and Shoutmon, the kids were well protected, but fishing for an answer. They could hammer it all day, and would if they needed to, but this lifeless wretch could keep getting up. Agumon and the others were great at destroying enemies, but destruction wasn't the solution here. They needed something more nuanced, and a solution like that wasn't going to emerge from a pack of goggleheads. Even Ken, surely the smartest in the group, struggled to think of any plan that might work.

After watching Algomon stand up after yet another of WarGreymon's attacks, Tai groaned. "Really, none of us have any ideas how to beat this guy?!"

"Try using the gel inside all these pods."

The suggestion came from a new voice standing behind them. Tai turned around and found that it was a gogglehead all the same. These were yellow goggles over a patch of green hair. The boy was younger than any of the others, probably in late elementary or middle school, wearing a red track jacket.

The boy continued: "It's like a toxin that can slow muscles and disable your nerves." He turned around and looked at who was undoubtedly his partner- a white creature with robotic limbs and a red metal helmet. He had opened one of the pods and carefully scrutinized the contents inside.

Tai narrowed his eyebrows. "How did you figure that out?"

Turning back towards Tai, the boy smiled. "Internet," he said with a cool shrug.

The partner turned around and marched towards them, a sample of gel in his claw. Tai now noticed the magnifying glass around his helmet. "I hope you got the idea. Sheesh, don't make me read off all the chemicals in this goop! Because I will!"

"But hey, maybe if you cover him with enough of it you can paralyze him. I just..." The boy looked down, still retaining a faint smile. "I don't know what's happening to the city, but you guys are the only ones doing anything about it." He looked up at Tai, his smile brightening. "So I want to help!"

Tai only stared back at the pair. "Tai?" asked Takato, himself staring at the two locals.

Shaking his head, Tai huffed, "Worth a shot." He smiled at the boy. "So I guess you're, uh..."

"I'm Haru," he said, bowing.

"Great." Tai turned around, frowning at Algomon. "Now how the hell do we try this out?"

The others stared at Algomon, pondering a solution. Mikey, without a word, got up and approached the nearest pod to him. He poked and prodded at it in silent investigation. He took a deep breath and fused the Star Sword to hack the vine on one end. Gel spilled out immediately, but Mikey caught the end attached to the pod and tied it off.

He had kept the gel in the tube and needed to do the same on the other end, but that would send it crashing to the ground with somebody inside. Before he could ask for help, Haru and his partner approached him and asked, "Anything I can do?"

"Hold this and get ready to catch." Mikey handed Haru the pod and ran over, slashing and tying the other side. Now off the vine completely, the weight of the pod knocked the boy over.

"Okay... step three..." Feeling more confident, Mikey made a careful incision across the top of the pod- opening enough for him and Haru to pull the woman inside out while retaining as much gel as possible. Ken arrived to help get her to safety. Mikey returned the sword to his Fusion Loader and helped Haru pick up the pod. It was still heavy, but manageable without an occupant. Most of the gel was still inside.

With their partners escorting them, the two carried it down the street towards Algomon. Once close enough that they could feel the heat from their allies' attacks, Haru said, "Um... how are we going to drop this on him?"

Mikey already had that figured out. It's why he didn't pocket his Fusion Loader. "Pickmons! Digifuse!"

His army of tiny Pickmons banded together to form the band of a giant slingshot. "That's how," Mikey replied, more professional than enthusiastic.

"Did you just..." Haru's face lit up. "Wow! You're really good!"

They held each end of the slingshot while Shoutmon pulled it back, aiming the pod at Algomon's leg. He reared back and fired, landing a direct hit. The pod popped on impact, splattering most of Algomon's calf with gel. Algomon turned towards them and took two steps. The first foot planted normally. The second landed, then wobbled. It collapsed under Algomon's weight, bring the whole monster down with it. He still fired a few shots towards them, which WarGreymon blocked, but his leg kept him down for a couple minutes. Enough time for the others to join Mikey.

"All right! It worked!" Haru exclaimed. "He's staying down!"

"Great!" Davis echoed. "So all we need to do is..."

As the gel wore off, Algomon returned to his feet and fought anyone nearby. Shoutmon grumbled, "...get enough of that stuff to cover his entire body and find some way to keep it on him."

Marcus slammed a fist into his hand. "So what are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

* * *

Kazu Shioda had to crawl through the grass for the last thirty yards to reach the lake. When he arrived, he nearly dunked his head in to drink from it. The thought struck him that this wasn't at all healthy. His insides had already been twisted dry, leaving him unable to make the complete trip on his feet. The crawl made him wish he'd accepted Guardromon's offer for help. The armored robot was idiot enough to take no for an answer.

He hadn't eaten all day. After somehow stretching his box of digibytes over three days, his reward on the fourth was starvation. Right now he was too tired to address that problem. He'd have plenty of time to think about it trudging back to his tree. After drinking enough to make his throat feel a little less dry, Kazu filled his water bottle, carefully eyeing a Brachiomon bending down to feed at the same watering hole. Brachiomon saw him and seemed to narrow an eye, but brushed him off and continued drinking.

"Think we could ask her for help?" Guardromon asked.

Kazu shook his head. They tried begging for assistance on the second day. The only time they didn't get attacked, the family of Gotsumon shooed them out the door the moment he asked for just a place to hide and rest. This continent was too hostile for charity.

"Kazu, look!" Guardromon pointed to the sky. In the distance, they saw a large black bird flapping past them. Kazu barely identified its three legs and what appeared to be passengers.

"Crowmon..." he whispered, his voice too hoarse for anything else.

"One signal flare coming up!" Guardromon readied his missiles, but a large splash of water stopped them.

A MarineDevimon burst out of the lake, forcing Kazu to hide behind a patch of reeds. MarineDevimon wrapped its tentacles around Brachiomon, squeezing until the dinosaur was destroyed.

"Guardian-!" Kazu grabbed his partner and dragged him into hiding too, motioning for him to be quiet. "But Kazu, should they fail to see us..."

Kazu watched his rescue party flying past him. If he didn't get their attention now, who knows how long before they'd circle back to him. Cringing, he nodded to Guardromon, who fired a set of missiles past MarineDevimon and hopefully close enough to Crowmon to get his attention.

Both noticed. Crowmon slowed down. Kazu couldn't see if he turned, however, as MarineDevimon did, firing poison ink at Guardromon. It connected, knocking him over and disabling him. MarineDevimon floated towards them, forcing Kazu to stagger backwards. Tentacles shot out and wrapped around the reeds, barely missing Kazu. He tried to run, but didn't have the energy. Another try from MarineDevimon snared the tamer and hoisted him into the air.

Before Kazu could even register that he needed to fear for his life, a magical symbol from Taomon's brush connected with MarineDevimon, burning him with light energy and jarring Kazu free. He landed in the lake and barely had enough stamina to surface.

Another tentacle grabbed him again. As he rose out of the water, he saw Taomon, Cyberdramon and Crowmon flying towards him.

"Thousand Spells!" Taomon's next attack disabled MarineDevimon's limbs. Again, Kazu fell into the water. This time, his body revolted, punishing four days of undernourishment with a refusal to surface.

Before he lost consciousness, he saw the magic shield appear around him and levitate him to safety. He rose past MarineDevimon to the shore.

"Desolation Claw!" While MarineDevimon fended off Taomon's attacks, Cyberdramon had a clear opening for his, slashing through and erasing the menace's data.

While the two Digimon checked on Guardromon, Crowmon landed and deposited their partners. Rika and Ryo ran up to Kazu, dropping to their knees beside him. Ryo pulled a bottle of water out of his pack and tried to hand it over. Kazu didn't take it; he was summoning enough energy to sit up and pull Rika into a hug.

"You found me..." he mumbled.

She tried to be annoyed at his gesture, but she was more bothered by her own crying. Rika wrapped her arms around him. "Don't do that again, stupid," she sobbed.

Ryo set the water down and, still on his knees, joined them. He waited for Rika to snap at him. It never happened. He was silent for a moment, indulging in their little tamers hug and the relief of a completed mission..

"Probably going to be dark soon. We should think about making camp," he finally said.

"Not a chance," Rika said, nudging back until Ryo released them and she could pull away. "We're going back now."

Ryo started to protest, but saw how worn down she was after only a couple days.

"I'm with her. I want to be anywhere but here right now," Kazu said. He was still hoarse and finally accepted Ryo's water.

Keenan approached them and said, "No problem. Crowmon ready when you are. Should be able to get far before we need to stop."

Rika and Ryo helped Kazu to his feet, slung his arms around their shoulders and helped him walk over to Crowmon. As they supported him along the way, Ryo took his hand from Kazu's back and squeezed Rika's wrist. She narrowed her eyes and looked over at him. He reassured her with a nod. Rika just smiled back and kept walking.

* * *

Marcus Damon was surprised and energized to see the sun rising. He wasn't used to an endurance test, but he felt like he was up for it. While the others were all running around, he, ShineGreymon and a rotation of combatants had to make sure Algomon stuck around for the night.

Having a way to immobilize Algomon was a huge breakthrough. Actually carrying it out was a tremendous undertaking that was still ongoing. The team had taken every tarp they could find, pulling them off trucks and raiding a nearby industrial warehouse Haru had discovered. By the time they were all laid out on the street, with Agunimon welding their edges together, it was large enough for a pair of Algomon.

Every inch of it had to be covered in gel. In morbid fortuity, there were pods everywhere stretching as far as they could tell. The city was silent; no police or military or media intervened. It was a grim sign of how much Algomon had been able to infest before their arrival. Still, it was convenient being able to work undisturbed.

A few hours in, they had smoothed their pod harvesting process enough to only need teams of two. With saws "borrowed" from the warehouse, they would cut loose each side simultaneously, leaving enough room to tie off the ends and preserve the gel. One would catch, one would release the captive and lead him or her to safety. Davis suggested getting them to help once they were upright, but Rhythm insisted on keeping the public as blind as possible. Still, with three teams, plus the Digimon that could chip in when they didn't need to rest or assist ShineGreymon, they made progress.

"Iced coffee?" Marcus looked over his shoulder and found Haru's partner handing him a bottle. "I searched online and it said this'll fill you full of energy to start the day!" He also handed one to Rhythm standing nearby. She accepted it with a cheery smile.

Marcus took it, nodded, and indulged in a long drink. Then he turned back around and shouted, "Hey, did you pay for this?"

"Don't worry," Rhythm said. "Once we leave, no one will remember we were here."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "What makes you so sure?" Rhythm's shoulders sank.

Behind them, Takato and Takuya carried in another pod to the tarp. By now they only needed a few more to cover it. "How long do we have to do this?" Takuya asked.

"Keep going," Tai replied. "We should have a few spares just in case."

Takato chuckled as he helped fix the pod in place. "Hey, Tai, you should have seen the afro on the guy we just pulled out. His hair might be better than yours!"

"The 'stache put it over the top," Takuya added. They set the pod down and backed away to let Mikey and Haru bring the next one in. Stopping for a drink, Takuya looked up at the vine-covered buildings. "So once we get out of here... we'll never be in the human world again?"

"Well..." Takato flashed a tiny grin. "We did figure out how to get here. There's nothing stopping us from-"

"No," Tai interrupted. "This isn't our world." He looked at Haru. "People here probably don't know anything about Digimon."

"I guess you're right," Takato said. He looked up at the sunlight as it started to peek over a building, dragging an orange sky behind it. "Honestly... I'm okay with that. This doesn't feel like home." He reached over and pet Guilmon. "My world hadn't felt like home in a while either. The castle... that feels like home. Maybe it took all that time away from it to realize that."

Shoulders slumping and with a heavy sigh, Takuya walked past him, sullenly mumbling, "Come on. There's more over here."

They gathered the rest of the pods in silence. Davis or Haru would sometimes say something to lighten the mood, but neither ever got a response. Another twenty minutes of work and Ken declared the project done... at least done enough to execute: "I don't trust this stuff out in the sun, so we shouldn't wait."

"Okay everyone, get digivolving," Tai said. "Let's see if we can draw him over here."

He ran out to Marcus, watching WarGreymon and ShineGreymon keep Algomon on the pavement. "We're ready! Grab him!" Tai shouted. Marcus nodded and shouted out orders. ShineGreymon hoisted Algomon off the ground and flew him towards the tarp.

The Mega got a third of the way before Algomon regained consciousness and shot his vines forward, covering ShineGreymon. WarGreymon flew in for the rescue but one shot of electricity was enough to drop his counterpart. ShineGreymon dropped Algomon and crashed to the ground.

WarGreymon drilled into him, his claws ripping into Algomon and propelling him further towards the tarp. Eventually he tore right through Algomon's body and past him. The enemy fell to the ground, but only temporarily, returning to his feet and firing bullets of energy in every direction. WarGrowlmon prevented any from reaching the tarp. Finally, Algomon settled on his next targets- Marcus, Tai, and Rhythm.

"Get behind me!" Marcus shouted to Rhythm. She did, hiding behind him while taking Tai's hand. Marcus took a brave stance, but even he flinched as the vines shot at them.

"Splendor Blade!" This time it was Imperialdramon, in full Fighter Mode, making the save, slashing through the vines and standing between Algomon and Marcus.

Imperialdramon tried to send him further back, but Algomon continued to resist. "Positron Cannon!" shouted Imperialdramon, shooting a devastating pulse of energy towards Algomon, sending him backwards wildly towards the tarp.

"Careful!" Tai shouted. "We have to get him on there right! We only have one chance at this!"

Algomon shot off another round of energy bullets, again forcing WarGrowlmon and now OmniShoutmon to deflect them. They staggered backwards, almost tripping over the tarp. Stray bullets struck nearby buildings, shattering walls and windows.

Marcus cringed at the destruction, but it was Haru's reaction that made him mad. The boy stood behind the tarp with his partner and Agunimon, trembling as he watched the rubble fall to the streets. His home was blowing up in front of him, all due to some invader from another reality. Marcus's team needed to take it out, no matter how invulnerable it was.

As Imperialdramon and WarGreymon did what they could to control Algomon, Marcus marched towards them, a fist clenched. "Okay, I've had enough! You do whatever you want to our world! Smash it up, attack innocent villages, whatever: we'll be on top of that." He opened his hand and held it out. "But you have the nerve to jump into this new place and start tearing it up like you own it? And you won't even go down when we tell you?! Too far, asshole!" With one quick motion, the energy surrounded his hand. "DNA Charge! Burst Mode Activate!"

Flames engulfed ShineGreymon. Only half of them subsided, revealing a standing Mega with a fiery sword and shield. The remaining flames behind him propelled him forward, slamming into Algomon. Algomon enveloped him in vines again but this time ShineGreymon ignored them and pushed his opponent towards the tarp. Imperialdramon sliced the vines off and joined in.

"Now!" Marcus and Tai shouted, both running up to them. WarGreymon came in from the other side and together the three of them picked up Algomon and slammed him into position on the tarp. The pods under him exploded on contact, covering his back in gel.

"All right!" Tai exclaimed. He turned to Marcus. "You did it!" Marcus was too incensed to notice. His eyes were still on the enemy, still seething, still fueling Burst Mode. Tai backed away.

OmniShoutmon and WarGrowlmon took the next step. WarGrowlmon used his thrusters to lift off the ground, allowing the two to pull the other side of the tarp over Algomon. They had just enough room to tuck him in nicely. Heat from Agunimon, and then ShineGreymon, sealed the two ends of the tarp together.

"And now we cross our fingers..." Tai said.

WarGrowlmon and Shinegreymon kept the tarp closed while OmniShoutmon stood over it to apply pressure from above. All three felt Algomon starting to resist, but only faintly. After a minute, it stopped. They felt nothing.

"Quick!" Rhythm rushed in. "Let's get back to our world. We'll worry about the rest later."

"The rest?!" Marcus groaned. "There's a 'the rest?'"

Tai didn't elaborate, but called for WarGreymon to revert to Koromon. The others followed his lead, their Digimon turning back to their base forms. Marcus's Agumon walked up next to Rhythm. She patted his head and smiled.

Everyone surrounded her with one exception. Haru stayed back, looking at the group, unsure what to do. "So... you guys are leaving already?"

"Once Algomon is gone, everything here will go back to normal quickly," Rhythm said.

"But-"

"Thanks for the help, man!" Davis interrupted.

"Definitely," Tai added. With a melancholy smile, he said, "And uh... good luck. I'm sure you'll do fine."

Haru's lip quivered. Wiping his eyes with his sleeve he shouted back, "Thanks! I hope we're as strong as you guys one day!"

The six leaders grinned back at him as a white light surrounded them all. But before the world disappeared completely around them, Rhythm said, "Haru?" He stopped waving to listen: "We'll see you in about six years."

The light completely blocked out Haru's world, leaving just the seven humans, their Digimon, and two creators. Takuya grunted. "Man... we totally should have warned him what's going to happen to him."

"It doesn't matter. He won't remember any of this anyway," Rhythm said, eyeing Agumon again.

"So what happens when we get back?" Ken asked. "We can't keep him in there forever."

Rhythm sighed. "No... the only way to stop him. The only way to make the world whole again is to restore him to life."

"Bring him back to life?!" Marcus exclaimed. "This pain in the ass?!"

"How do we do that?" asked Tai, his calm voice silencing Marcus.

"As I said... it gets tricky." After looking around at the entire group, Rhythm closed her eyes and lowered her head. "Unfortunately... the only way to restore life to a creator... is to surrender the life a creator has given."

* * *

 **Next Time on Neverworld- Episode 26: "Born to Believe"**  
The six leaders must process the sacrifice they'll need to make to restore Algomon, then convince their teams to agree to it. Mikey continues to break down, threatening the plan.

 _"I don't know what's going to happen, but at least we're all going through it together."_

* * *

 **Author Notes**  
Given the nature of the disappearances and the uncertainty behind being able to find them, you bet I'm going to have fun with it via the 02 kids! Ken's line to Matt about "checking on the welfare" of Tai mirrors Maki's answer to Matt when he asked about Ken. Davis's insistence on going after the three is undoubtedly influenced by the events of tri. While he treats the situation with all the gravity it deserves, inside he's probably kind of enjoying this.

The origin story for the world and Rhythm's ability to pull everyone in was in place well before the first tri. movie, but tri. was very useful in helping justify some of the circumstances allowing her to get everybody and do it when she did. Bringing them in six years later was originally a pretty arbitrary number allowing everyone to interact as older teenagers with some time and perspective behind them. tri. and I just happened to agree that it's a particularly good age to catch up with them again.

Anyone mainly familiar with the earlier seasons might be a little stunned at Shoutmon brazenly refusing his partner's orders. Koromon's reaction reflects that. Later seasons depend far more on the personality of the Digimon or the kid. Six years of being king means Shoutmon doesn't answer to anybody.

Izzy's "it's showtime" line irks Thomas since it's Kurata's catchphrase.

The anomalies Rhythm refers to are the other non-canon movies. Think of them as little alternate realities that branch off but never have the momentum to solidify. Takato teased the notion in episode 16, and the interactions with Ornismon and the strong implication that the Tamers were never reunited with their Digimon suggests the Tamers and Frontier movies are equally dubious. This may also be where the legendary heroes came from at the end of Hunters.

Speaking of which- Haru! So of course the detour into the Appmon world was not part of the original plan either. I didn't actually have a destination in mind, but a few episodes in made the solution was obvious. Since this is going off the dub, I do worry about using names that would be subject to change, so I don't name Haru's partner or invoke any of the world's terminology (Haru is only named because calling him "the boy" the entire time would get old). It's the same reason Tagiru's name never comes up here; Fusion was still on the air when I started posting and a Hunters dub was still a possibility.

Thanks to Appmon helpfully dating all its episodes and me keeping an internal calendar of when everything happens, this would be happening to Haru right after his first meeting with Eri. Those who have been watching Appmon may also recognize that yes, Haru assumed Mikey's digifuse was an applink, he probably used Navimon to find the warehouse, and of course that guy with the cool afro was going to end up trapped in one of Algomon's pods.

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	27. 26- Born to Believe

**Author's Note**  
It's a little hard to believe this is over! This has been one of the most fun things I've ever written and I'm a little sad saying goodbye to it. I hope you've had the same experience reading it. Thank you for getting this far, and especially everybody who has commented on it- whether through review, private channel, and the alarming number of people I've bumped into on random chat rooms that say they've been quietly following along. Hope to hear from you all!

 **Neverworld**

 _We are one. We are strong._  
 _We can sing a different song._  
 _Let the right shine through the wrong._  
 _We're all here where we belong._  
 _\- Great Big Sea, "Born to Believe"_

 **Episode 26**

Rhythm tried not to watch the boys process the news. She hoped she wouldn't have to spell it out for them, but she could only be so vague given what she needed them to do. Time was running out, so she hoped for someone's reaction to guide her forward.

"So how many?" Mikey asked. She turned to him. His head was still down. She didn't mind. "How many of us need to surrender our lives?"

She sighed and answered, "Everyone." Everybody's eyes shot up at her. She leaned back.

"Everyone?" Tai asked. "You mean just us here or... everyone everyone?"

"I used my power to give every human and companion Digimon eternal life. That gift must be sacrificed, in its entirety, to restore Algomon and keep the world in balance. I'm sorry."

"You're..." Marcus huffed, eyes cast on the giant tarp holding the disabled Algomon. "So we go through all that trouble to bring him down and get him back here. And now you're saying the only way to seal the deal is for all of us to die?! That's not fair."

Rhythm shook her head repeatedly. "You're restoring life to a god that you yourselves killed. Of course the cost'll be steep. I wish I could help further, but all I can do is promise that the world will be saved."

The light surrounding them started to subside, revealing the normal Digital World as they had left it. As the light faded, so too did Rhythm. "Rhythm, wait!" Tai shouted. "What happens to us if we do this?! How would we know if it worked?! You can't just leave!"

"My place isn't on the surface. You just have to believe." Rhythm managed a smile. "Bye... and thank you so much for everything!"

Rhythm disappeared as the last bit of light vanished. They were in a grove south of the castle. All of them knew it well. It was where they all arrived in the Digital World, in six different groups staggered over eleven years.

"Great," Takuya muttered. He eyed Tai. "So let me guess, you're going to tell us we all need to bite the bullet?"

"I..." Tai stared at the tarp. Algomon wasn't stirring, and they were all armed with extra pods of gel, but this wasn't a permanent solution. Not that the permanent solution was at all appealing. "I don't know."

With a deep breath, Tai looked at the whole group and declared, "Okay, uh, Ken- send TK a message that we're back. Tell him everyone needs to get over here... and to bring anything you can think of to help keep this guy down. Everyone else? Uh... huddle up."

While the Digimon took the pods and kept a close eye on Algomon, the other five leaders followed Tai away from the site. He kept walking, his head down.

"Where are we going?" Davis asked.

"I don't know." Tai stopped and turned around. "I thought I'd have something to say by now." He shook his head. "Anyone got anything?"

"I'm sorry," Mikey said, drawing everyone's eyes. His head was too down to notice and his voice so low they needed to lean in to hear it. "If I had just done it-"

"Stop it," Tai spat. "We're all dead either way." He looked to the sky. "If we do this, maybe we'll still wake up. Or whatever would have happened..." He glanced at Mikey.

Takuya sighed. "Well, better to do it this way."

"No it isn't," Mikey said. "Now we have to put everybody through this. They all have to make this choice."

"Whoa, whoa, are we seriously doing this?" Marcus asked. "There's really no other choice?"

"I don't think so," Tai said. "She would have given us one if there was. She brought us here for a reason. She doesn't want this either. She loses out too. It's like everything here's reset to before we got here."

"So we have to do it," Mikey mumbled.

"But guys, we're just..." Davis searched for a face with any encouragement. "We can't just give up! We've been here all these years and now you just want to-"

"And how many years would we be stuck here?" Takuya asked, teeth gritted. "You really want to be stuck here forever? Now that we know there's no way out?" He scoffed. "Let's get it over with."

Marcus folded his arms. "But what happens to this place? If we're all gone and this guy's back to life, what's he going to do to it?"

"Well, at least we know there are more teams coming," Takato replied. With a sigh, he added, "Look, I mean... this is really sudden, guys. We're all really gonna..." He closed his eyes and exhaled.

Davis saw the pained look on his face and looked away. "Dude, don't... you're gonna get me started."

"Guys, I know, but..." Tai held a hand out. It fell; the weight of their fate was finally sinking in. "Mikey's right. We have to do this." He got dejected nods back from Mikey and Takuya.

Marcus, Takato and Davis continued to hold out. Tai continued, "If we don't, Algomon's going to wake up and he's never going to leave us alone. Or worse, he'll find a way back to that human world and we'll have to do all that over again! It's over!"

Takato rubbed his eyes. "Okay, but... don't we need to talk to the others? Even if I'm okay with this, I don't know about Rika."

Takuya's eyes widened. "Oh crap, Rika! Those guys are still looking for Kazu! And we still don't know about Zoe."

Tai nodded quickly. "Okay, uh... Davis? Kari went to find Zoe. Message her to see if she had any luck. Then you and Ken need to get over to Isthmian and pick up Rika and those guys."

"Yushima's still up there," said Takuya. "Hopefully he can get you the rest of the way."

"You'll have to explain what's going on to all of them once you pick them up." Davis cringed at the thought of having to explain all this to Rika and Ryo, but he ran back to Ken nonetheless.

"So who gets to explain this to everyone else?" Marcus asked.

"All of us," said Tai. "We're the leaders. Once they get here, take your team and explain what we need to do." He took a deep breath. "I don't know what's going to happen, but at least we're all going through it together."

* * *

Angie Hinomoto caught the first flight to the grove, joining Sora aboard Birdramon. The order to meet the six down there confused everybody. Hearing from them at all was even more of a surprise. But they knew the severity of the situation and figured it was urgent and for a damn good reason. While others tried to figure out how to ferry everyone down and Thomas worked to provide some sort of tubing and whatever anasthetic Joe had in medical, Sora grabbed the first person she saw and flew out.

The first thing they saw was the tarp. They could guess what was under it. Takuya and Marcus kept a close eye on it, checking for any tears or gaps. Tai, meanwhile, came out to meet Birdramon with Takato behind him. Mikey watched them land, but from a distance.

Both girls jumped off. Sora's face was cold, her eyes steeled and set on one target. Her lower lip twitched as she marched up to Tai and pulled him in close. Her nails dug into his shoulders. Tai winced as he rubbed her back. Sora squeezed him tighter and tighter until finally, in one sudden motion, pulled away from him, almost with a shove.

Her hands shook as they stared at each other. Tai didn't dare move. Finally, Sora held up her hands, shook her head, and walked past him. She found Takato and hugged him next, exhaling a sigh. This embrace was far warmer.

Tai didn't turn around to see it. Angie walked up to him, shaking her head. "Seriously. Car crash. All three of you." He looked down and grimaced.

She continued: "But I, uh... I'm glad you guys got back okay." He looked at her and nodded, but still didn't smile. "So what's going on?"

"Um... better to wait for everyone to get here. Mikey will try to explain it for you." He glanced at Mikey quickly before facing her again. "Sorry."

She wasn't mad, however. Angie saw Mikey staring back at her, his face drained. Once their eyes met, he blinked a couple times and ran off. Nobody seemed to care. Even Shoutmon watched him go, then returned to monitoring the tarp. Angie didn't understand, but didn't care. She went after him.

Angie found him at the edge of the forest, pressing his forehead against a tree. "Mikey, what's happening?" she asked, approaching with caution.

"I let you down," he said. "I could have stopped this. I could have put an end to this whole place and get you out of here. Like you want." He sniffed and turned around. "It would have meant killing a little girl with my bare hands but... dammit..."

Angie didn't wait for him to finish. She marched up and slapped him. "Jeez, did you even hear what you just said?"

"She and Algomon are like the gods of this place. She's the one that brought us here! And getting rid of them..."

"Mikey, why would you think I'd want you to do that for me?" She clutched his shoulders. "Nothing's worth that. Seriously? A little girl?"

"I wanted to..." His eyes lost focus. Now he was just mumbling. "I was right there... my hands were... but I couldn't. She just wanted our help. But now we-"

"Don't worry about what happens now! You couldn't do it because you knew it wasn't right." Her voice softened but her grip on him didn't. "Mikey, if you thought doing something that awful could get me to forgive you..."

Mikey's body started to shake. His breathing was more staggered. She held him up through all of it. "I... I know," he whispered. "I know it was terrible. But why do I feel like this for not doing it?"

"Because that's how you're wired." Angie pulled him into a hug. "You're obsessed and you need to stop. I know you want to save everybody and be a hero but... we're all heroes here. We can do anything. If we need help, we'll ask for it. It doesn't all fall on you. Stop thinking it does."

She held him closer as he started to cry. "But it feels like that's all I'm good at."

"That's not true. You're the most capable boy I know. You just need to..." Angie paused. She struggled to believe this teary mess in her arms was really Mikey. In the years they had known each other, she had never seen him this weak. Pitiful as it was, it made her glad. He finally felt human.

"You need to try saving yourself," she concluded. She felt his shudder and the crying intensify. "I mean it, Mikey. You're falling. You have been for a long time. I just hope you realize it now."

He squeezed her tighter. Slowly, he nodded and said, "I don't deserve you."

Angie closed her eyes, letting him lose himself in her arms a little longer before pushing away from him. She still held his hands as she stared into his eyes. "No you don't." She shook her head. "And you don't have me. I'm not there yet."

Mikey's head fell. "Then... then why are you here?"

"Because you're falling." She put her hand on his chin and cheek and lifted him up. "And no matter what, I'll always cushion your fall."

* * *

Kari Kamiya knew it wasn't really the case, but the full crowd of people in the grove felt like a hero's welcome as Nefertimon and Kazemon flew in. Why shouldn't it have been? Zoe really was in serious trouble and Kari and Jeremy really did go out of their way to save her, risking their lives in the process. Jeremy still wore her torn uniform around his wound and all three were exhausted from the trip. The few hours of sleep they tried to get outside the cave wasn't nearly enough.

Tai hugged her the moment she landed. She resisted the urge to brag about how right she was. There was time for that later. Whatever was going on here, it was serious. After leaving the cave and attempting to sleep, she had messaged TK for an update on the battle. His only response was "I'll fill you in when you get back." She asked if everyone was okay. He answered the same way. They didn't wait until morning to fly back.

Next to her, Angie and Ewan were the first to welcome Jeremy while JP and Tommy were all over Zoe. She hugged them both and gave a very brief summary of what had happened. Once they separated, Takuya was next. Kari and Jeremy both stopped their receiving line to watch, concerned about Zoe's hesitance.

"Look... Takuya..." she started. He hugged her so quickly she never got to finish. Jeremy narrowed his eyes, prompting Kari to set a hand on his shoulder. She was ready to point out Takuya's tears.

"I have so many questions, but I don't care," he muttered. "I'm just glad you're all right." He pulled away and stared at her. "I know we should talk about this but... it probably won't matter. I need to see all of you."

Kari and Jeremy looked at each other in confusion. She turned to Tai, who took a deep breath and answered, "Kari, I need to explain what's going on. Jeremy, go find Mikey."

While Tai directed traffic, sending everyone to the right groups, Kari joined hers. TK, Sora, Mimi and Joe had already welcomed her back. Now she found herself standing next to Izzy. He looked away, determined not to notice her.

She wasn't going to allow that. "Mimi told me what happened," she said, low enough to avoid prying ears but certain Izzy would hear her.

He did, and he squirmed. After a few uncomfortable moments, none of them looking at her, he replied, "It wasn't just about that."

Kari's hands fidgeted. She realized that. She figured out what he wanted. She didn't want to say it. "I... think I pieced it together." Izzy winced. She took a deep breath. "I forgive you." Glancing at him, she added, "I think." Then she shook her head. "Can we just leave it there for now?" Izzy couldn't do anything but nod.

Tai shuffled in. His head was down. "Okay, so..." He forced a smile. "Wow, how long's it been since the eight of us had a meeting like this?"

"Excuse me! Ten of us." Tai looked up to see Yolei and Cody standing across from him. Her arms were folded. "You sent Davis on an errand, remember?"

"We are part of this group, right?" Cody asked.

"Of course," Tai answered, taking a deep breath before getting to the point: "So... there's no normal way to stop this guy. We immobilized him for now, but eventually he's going to get out of there. And he'll just continue attacking us and going after Patamon."

TK clutched Patamon in his arms, stroking his head. "So what do we do?"

"Well, he's a god here, and he's apparently dead, so we have to bring him back to life."

"Bring him back to life?" Matt asked. "Whatever that involves can't be good."

"We all have to... what did she say? Surrender the life given to us."

Tai forced himself to look at everyone's faces. Most were stunned into silence. Izzy was deep in thought, finally nodding. "Unfortunately, it makes sense that a sacrifice of that magnitude would be necessary."

Matt sneered. "So what, we all just agree to do this and then just... drop?"

Tai shook his head. "I don't know. I don't know if it's instant or if it'll hurt or if our Digimon have to go too... or if there's anything after that." He shrugged. "Maybe this really is the only way out of here."

"But we found a way out!" Cody exclaimed. "We just opened a gate."

"To a different world. Someone else's. A different digidestined or whatever he was. We can't get involved over there." Tai looked up, staring at the sky for a while before saying, "Look, no matter what happens, things will change. They have to. We've been here eleven years. I'm happy we found a way to stay safe and be stable but... it was never going to last forever, was it?"

"But..." Mimi shook her head, biting her lip. "Why does it have to lead to this? Fighting so hard only to have to give our lives up..."

"Because we're digidestined," Joe answered. "We don't ever get a choice." His hand balled into a fist. "Our Digital World needs saving? We get pulled in without getting asked. This one needs saving? Same thing. We have to die to save it?" He sighed. "Where do we line up?"

Sora looked around at the other teams having the same discussion. "I hope the others are okay. Some of them chose this. Some of them wanted it. They never knew it would lead to this." Biyomon nuzzled her head into her partner's shoulder.

Yolei stared at Tai while holding Hawkmon's wing. "There's really no other way?"

"I don't see one," Tai said. His eyes felt heavy. "If we don't do this, Algomon's never going to stop attacking us. He'll destroy everything we fought for. You just have to trust us on this one."

He stared back at Yolei and Cody, waiting for their response. It came from Cody: "All right, Tai. We'll do what needs to be done." Everyone's shoulders slumped a little, but unanimous nods echoed his answer.

"So how long do we have?" asked Kari.

"Until Davis gets back. So a few hours probably," answered Tai. "Spend it with your Digimon. Say goodbye to the others." He sighed. "Say goodbye to each other, I guess." A tear streamed down. "I'm glad all of us are together for this."

Everyone could tell the meeting was over when Tai fell to his knees and hugged Agumon. Most of them did the same with their partners. TK, still holding Patamon, left to see some of the others.

Sora didn't move. She squeezed Biyomon tighter, both of them in silence. Neither budged until Sora felt the hand on her shoulder. She looked back, setting Biyomon down when she saw Matt.

"What?" she asked. Matt paused for a moment before pulling her into a hug. She didn't understand it, but closed her eyes and let it soothe her anyway.

It didn't last long. He pulled away after a few seconds. But his eyes stayed on her, the softness in them betraying his stoic face.

"What was that for?" she asked.

"I just..." he began. Matt took a moment to frame his words carefully. "Well, we don't know what's going to happen so..." He looked away. "Can we not leave angry this time?"

Sora jumped back into his arms, wrapping hers around his neck. "That would be nice," she said, holding on to him as long as she could. Once she pulled away, they looked at each other for a long time before finally sharing a relieved smile.

* * *

Takato Matsuki struggled not to cry. He got everything out successfully, but explaining it to his friends made it feel far more real than hearing it from Rhythm. He held Guilmon for stability and comfort. Seeing the others process this made him feel worse.

"Henry, do we really have to?" Suzie asked, wrapping herself in her brother's arm.

"Well..." Henry stared at Takato, looking for any sign that there was more. "I want to check with Thomas and Izzy first but if they agree this needs to happen..."

"This is awful," said Kenta. "Come on, seriously? I like it here."

"Guys, I mean..." Takato sighed. "If you think about it, we were lucky to be able to come here. It was never the same without Guilmon. Seeing him again, getting to live here, meeting all the others... I wouldn't trade it back."

Kenta nodded. "Yeah. I don't want it to end, but it was a lot of fun."

"And at least this time we'll be able to say goodbye the right way." Henry looked up at Terriermon clinging to his shoulder.

"Maybe it's just me but..." Jeri blinked. "I'm ready. We've been here eight years. I know there may not be anything after this, but at least we're giving back to this world."

Somehow it made Takato smile. None of the team protested. Even Suzie now nodded at Jeri. Takato put his arms around Guilmon and Henry. "Come on guys, bring it in."

"Excuse me?" Henry narrowed his eyes at Takato, but Terriermon and Suzie were already pulling him into a group hug.

As Kenta's arm wrapped around her shoulder, Suzie managed a smile. "Wow, we can actually do this. Rika's not here."

Jeri snickered, one hand stroking MarineAngemon. The other hand found Takato's atop Guilmon. As he looked at her, his smile fell. Hers grew, squeezing his hand. He lifted it up and moved in closer, resting it on her shoulder as the five humans and three Digimon huddled together with their heads down.

They stayed silent, their eyes closed and undoubtedly dwelling on the sacrifice they were about to make. Takato shook off the thoughts. Instead, he brought back all the happy memories of his years here, especially compared to his life back home. He nodded and broke the silence: "This was totally worth it."

* * *

Takuya Kanbara turned away after delivering the news to avoid seeing the reactions. He hadn't slept in three days. Knowing now what had happened to Zoe, it should have been four. Now that the fighting and rescuing and immobilizing was over, he was ready to collapse. The high of having enemies and battles and facing them in his Digimon forms was enough to push him through even the most dire of situations on minimal rest. Explaining why his team had to offer up their lives was more exhausting than any Royal Knight.

"That's crap," Koji muttered. "I'm not dying for this thing."

"Yeah, look at what he did to us," JP said.

"Sure we can't just strand him somewhere and hope he doesn't find us?" Tommy asked.

"But that doesn't fix anything," Zoe said. She looked over the grove, and the woods behind it. "This world's been acting up since we killed him. It's only going to get worse."

Koji narrowed his eyebrows. "If we have to give our lives up to fix it, who cares?"

"We should care," Koichi said. He looked up at his brother. "This world's been our home for so long. Don't you feel a little responsible for it?"

"Don't tell me I was the only one upset when Mikey wanted to destroy it." Zoe looked around the circle. Koji looked away, but still conceded a nod.

Tommy squeezed his D-Tector. "I never wanted to say anything, but... yeah. I mean, destroying a Digital World? Doesn't that go against what we're supposed to be doing?" He looked down at the tiny display reflecting Kumamon. "I mean, we're all Digimon too."

"Yeah... I guess I know what you mean," said JP, hands in his pockets. "It just sucks that we gotta do it like this."

"It doesn't get any easier," Koichi said. "But if it's necessary..."

Koji stared at his brother and said, "At least this time you don't have to go through with it alone. I'll do it with you." He stepped forward and held a hand out.

"Me too," Tommy said, putting his hand on top of Koji's. Koichi smiled and joined them, followed by JP and Zoe.

Only then did Takuya turn his head. He was in no condition for a passionate speech. He was so disgusted with their fate he could never have pleaded with them to choose it. Just as they always did, his team of misfits came through. They figured it out and came to the conclusion for themselves.

"Come on Takuya," said Zoe, smiling sadly. "We're finally getting out of here."

Takuya joined them. Whether it was due to emotion or exhaustion, tears poured as he put his hand atop Zoe's. "I don't care what anyone says. I love you guys."

They stayed together, hands united, for almost a minute before Takuya pulled his hand away. He really was ready to collapse and the outburst of tears didn't help. Tommy and Koji caught him and tried to lead him somewhere he could rest.

Zoe stared at him, debating for a long time if she should join them. She took a step in Takuya's direction and stopped when JP said, "What are you doing?"

"I was just..." She didn't know what he was getting at.

"If we're really gonna die in a few hours, who do you want to spend it with? The guy you ran from or the guy who ran to save you?"

Zoe turned to the meeting of the Fusion Fighters. The whole group looked uneasy, unable to reach the same consensus hers did. Jeremy darted his eyes between Christopher and Nene, paying close attention but unable to get a word in.

With a sigh, she said, "Well, if there was one good thing to come out of this mess, it did prove something..." She turned to JP and smiled. "It's definitely for real."

Hands behind her back, she approached the other group, in time to hear Christopher: "Never mind that bringing anything back to life sounds like a bad idea. You can't throw us under the bus here. You might be willing to give your life up for all this but who else is?"

Ewan nodded. "I know sometimes this place doesn't feel real. So it's easy to just agree to this. But you can't think like that. You have to act like this is the only reality. You have to think this is final."

"But what if it needs to be?" asked Nene. "What if this world is so messed up it needs us to do this so it can start over again?"

"That doesn't make any sense," Christopher said. "Algomon comes back but nobody's there to fight him?"

"Not true," replied Ewan. "Cavalry's coming next year."

"You really think they can handle all this alone?"

Ewan shrugged. "Don't underestimate what those guys are capable of."

Zoe finally tapped Jeremy on the shoulder. "Uh, we're sort of in the middle of something." Jeremy said.

"And aren't you supposed to be with Takuya?" asked Christopher.

She smiled. "We're done. We all agreed to do it." She tugged Jeremy's arm. "Come on. I wasted enough time over at Isthmian. I'm not waiting for these guys to come around. We've only got a little time left and I'm spending all of it with you."

Jeremy continued to protest. "But we still need to-"

"Go," Angie said, shooing him forward. "We're going to be at this for a while. You two have some catching up to do." Jeremy looked around; both Mikey and Nene were nodding.

"Well, okay..." Jeremy took Zoe's hand. "What did you want to-" His open mouth was silenced by hers. She pushed deeper and deeper, pulling away once he got the message. He gulped, but nodded and let her lead him away from the teams, into the forest.

* * *

Marcus Damon watched Thomas do another pass, checking the tarp around Algomon. "It's a good thing you were so thorough sealing this," Thomas said. "But I can't imagine it lasting more than a few more hours. We really need to do this, don't we?"

"We can't just lock him away somewhere?" Yoshi asked, arms folded. "Killing ourselves seems a bit dramatic."

"Even if we could transport him somewhere without stirring him, we'd need to find a suitable spot with an opening large enough to get him in and small enough to create an impenetrable seal. And even then the world doesn't function properly. It would be irresponsible to leave it like this."

Marcus scoffed. "What a piece of work. We spent the whole night beating this guy up and the only way to stop him is for us to die."

Gaomon stared at the tarp. "If that other creator is powerful enough to bring all of us here, it stands to reason an equally powerful force must exist to balance that."

"But Rhythm's good," said Agumon.

"So you need a bad." Marcus smirked. "Be awfully boring if we didn't have anybody stirring up trouble."

"Yeah, well if dying screws the world up this much, he doesn't have to be so hands on," Yoshi groaned.

"He wasn't," Thomas said. "You two went after him, remember?"

"Hey yeah!" Marcus pointed at Yoshi. "Didn't Rosemon finish him off in the first place?"

Yoshi reacted in shock. "Well, yeah, but..."

"Nice job getting us all killed, Yoshi," Agumon said.

"What?! I wasn't even in the room!" She stared at Marcus and Agumon, mortified at their scolding faces. She froze, her stomach churning as she considered her partner's responsibility in all this.

Then Marcus smirked and snorted. Yoshi clenched her teeth. "You!" She leaped forward and put him into a headlock. "I swear, Marcus! That wasn't funny!"

"It was a little funny," Lalamon said. "I knew they weren't serious."

Yoshi didn't let go, squeezing his neck under her arm. Despite this, he was laughing and she was struggling not to join him.

Thomas chuckled. He looked at the other teams gathered. Some sharing solemn words to each other, some in a big group hug, others taking their final opportunities to hold their partners. Meanwhile Marcus and Yoshi were acting like eight year olds.

"You know, we're supposed to be the mature ones here," he said.

Yoshi pulled away from Marcus, hands in the air. "Okay, fine, fine... but he started it."

"You finished it," Agumon quipped, earning a high-five from his partner.

After almost responding, Yoshi let it slide. Instead, she turned to her partner and busted out her digivice. "DNA Charge! Full Power!" Out of nowhere, Lalamon was now Lilamon.

Marcus, Thomas, and even a few from the other groups looked on in confusion. Yoshi ignored them, handing Lilamon a keyring. "Bottom drawer. Don't worry about anything else." With no further context, Lilamon flew back to the castle.

Yoshi watched her partner fly off, then spun around, facing Thomas. "You're right. We're the mature ones." She folded her arms. "During the whole river fiasco I got Izzy to smuggle in a bottle of shochu for me. I was saving it for a special occasion." She approached him, slinging an arm around Marcus's neck and dragging him to Thomas. Her other arm wrapped around his. "We may have to go through with all this, but you know what's nice about being a grown-up?" A big smile crossed her face. "We don't have to do it sober!"

* * *

Ryo Akiyama was happy Crowmon finally needed another break. Bad enough having to wedge in between Rika, Keenan and now Kazu aboard a giant bird whose back wasn't quite comfortable enough for three. He also had to make sure Cyberdramon stayed with them, didn't get distracted, or drop Guardromon. This involved frequent observation and the occasional yell.

Still, they were all too happy to be heading home to care. The party was experienced enough to know how to avoid trouble and none of them had any interest in getting drawn into a fight. The new continent had indeed been as hostile as advertised and they flew over more than a few atrocities. But they kept flying, refusing to look down. It wasn't their fight.

Rika took it hardest, and now at the tail end of the trip it was showing, especially during these breaks. She hadn't spent an extensive part of her childhood in the Digital World. Furthermore, her patrol work conditioned her to identify and respond to problems. Ignoring them, for Kazu's sake, wore her down. She sat off on her own, with only Renamon nearby. Neither spoke. Ryo wanted to help her, but knew it was futile. She'd dismiss anything he'd say as teasing or inappropriate flirting. This wasn't his job, much as he wanted it to be.

"Something's coming," said Renamon, her ears perking up. She looked towards the sky, putting everybody on guard. Both Ryo and Rika pulled out their D-Powers. They pocketed them when they realized it was Imperialdramon soaring towards them. Now they raised their hands to flag him.

"Either Takuya and Tai came to their senses or something really bad's going on," Ryo muttered.

Even before Imperialdramon landed, Rika was already shaking. Of course Ken and Davis were on board. They didn't expect to see Yushima and Kamemon. "Get on quick! We'll explain on the way back!" the old man shouted.

Rika sprinted to the dragon and jumped on board, holding back tears as she leaped into Ken's open arms. They didn't need words at first, their tight embrace being enough.

Once Ryo, Keenan, Kazu and their Digimon were aboard, the liftoff jolted Ken and Rika out of their moment. She still clung to him.

"I'm so sorry," Ken said.

Rika sniffed back a tear. "For what?"

"For letting you leave."

She stared up at him, a sad smile creeping onto her face as she replied, "I accept your apology."

As they held each other, Ryo leaned in, elbowing Ken. With a smile, he said, "See, I got her back to you in one piece. I'm a good sport."

Ken stared at Ryo for a while, then smiled. "You did. Thank you. I suppose that makes us even now."

Ryo recoiled. "Even? I don't remember owing you."

"I know you don't." Ken's smile grew.

As they faced off, Keenan approached the pilot. "So why come get us? Something going on?"

Davis shrugged, keeping his eyes ahead. "You know, this and that. Both castles got attacked, bunch of us got pulled into another world... met the other creator too."

"Uh oh," Kazu said. "Is he as bad as Algomon?"

"Nothing's as bad as Algomon. Who do you think attacked us?"

"What?! We killed him!"

"Apparently that's the problem," Ken said. "And it's a problem that won't go away unless we bring him back to life."

"Bring him back to life?" Rika looked up at him. "Why would we want to do that? And how do we do it?"

"Don't know if I like the idea of trying to bring something back to life," said Keenan.

Ken nodded. "I'm not comfortable with it either, Keenan. But if we don't, the world will never recover."

"So how do we do it?" asked Kazu.

With a deep sigh, Ken clutched Rika tighter as he looked up at Davis. Davis turned around. There was no joy on his face, just half a frown and wet eyes that didn't want to focus anywhere. Rika squeezed Ken even more. None of the new passengers knew exactly what Davis was about to say. They only knew it would be painful.

* * *

Thomas Norstein saw just the slightest movement in the tarp. It may have only been the wind, but it was enough to call Izzy and Tai over. When they arrived with their Digimon, they all saw the top move again.

"No, not yet!" Tai exclaimed.

"Do we have any more pods?" asked Izzy.

"A few, but they won't keep him down long if he breaks out."

"Where's Imperialdramon?" Thomas asked. The tarp stretched farther as Algomon kept trying to lunge forward.

"Still a few minutes away. You two hold him off until then." Tai ran off, leaving Izzy and Thomas to deal with the impending breakthrough. They were nervous, but Tentomon and Gaomon were ready for it and digivolved on command.

They didn't have to wait long. From inside, energy beams riddled the tarp with holes. Vines shot out of them, stretching the rest of the plastic to shreds in no time. They didn't stop, spreading out in every direction as Algomon rose to his feet, unfazed by the time in his makeshift coffin.

"Giga Scissor Claw!" HerculesKabuterimon fired his own beam from his horn, obliterating most of the vines and knocking Algomon back.

"Howling Cannon!" MirageGaogamon struck him again with a sound wave, putting him on his back again. He shrugged off both attacks and climbed to his feet anyway.

As he loomed over everyone, impervious to the shots he was taking, he provided the stark reminder of what they were facing. No matter what they hit him with, he could get up from anything. In the split second he had before another blast knocked him over, he turned his head and found Patamon. HerculesKabuterimon and MirageGaogamon were on top of him, sometimes literally as the giant gold beetle crushed him from above. But it wouldn't matter. He couldn't be there forever and Algomon would still get back up. There was only one escape.

Imperialdramon landed right on schedule. Every passenger jumped off as it reverted back to Veemon and Wormmon. Tai was there to greet Davis, but Algomon drew more attention. "He's out already?" Davis cried.

Tai gritted his teeth. "Afraid so. Say your goodbyes quick. We need to do this now."

Davis waved at the entire group and shouted, "Nice knowing you!" He lowered his hand and shrugged at Tai. "Hey, we're gonna die anyway. Why make a big deal about it?"

Others were more sentimental. Ryo and Kazu reunited with their fellow tamers while Yushima and Kamemon finally greeted Thomas for the first time since their arrival three years ago. It still didn't last long as Thomas was busy supervising the fight. Thankfully, Yoshi came through, offering the commander-general a swig of liquor from her bottle.

Another attack from HerculesKabuterimon knocked Algomon down again. This time Thomas ordered MirageGaogamon to splatter Algomon with the entire remaining supply of gel pods. The hope was he'd stay down for a little longer, but he had no idea how much time they really had.

"Now, Tai!" Izzy shouted.

Tai nodded at Izzy, but didn't move. Davis looked at him and asked, "So how exactly are we supposed to do this?"

The commander didn't respond at first. Instead he looked down at his partner. Agumon set a claw on his arm and said, "Good luck, Tai." Tai nodded and picked his head up.

"All right! It's time!" he shouted, marching towards Algomon. Along the way, he pulled out his digivice. "Everyone? It's been a blast working with all of you!" He stopped twenty feet in front of Algomon and raised his digivice towards the creator. Izzy and Thomas did the same.

Davis wasted no time. With Veemon at his side, he stood alongside Tai and held up his D3. He wasn't anywhere near Tai, on the far side of a line between Thomas and Davis, but Takuya did the same, pointing his D-Tector at Algomon.

Faint beams of light started to emanate from the five digivices, but nothing seemed to happen. Algomon was still lethargic but hardly defeated. Tai and the other four remained standing, and the occasional shake in their hands or heavy breath suggested they were still alive. Kari joined in, standing alongside her brother. TK followed- one hand on her shoulder while the other clutched his D3. Sora, Joe, Matt and Nene joined them. The latter two did so hand-in-hand.

Once Cody and Yolei raised their D3s, Ken realized he couldn't wait any longer. He stared at the growing line with Wormmon on his shoulder.

"This isn't fair," Rika said.

Ken shook his head, the arm opposite Wormmon around Rika's waist. "It never is," he said. Rika looked around, sighed, and pulled Ken into a long kiss. By the time they split up, Ryo, Kazu and Kenta were on board with their D-Powers in the air. Rika took Ken's hand as they headed to their fate.

"Now don't be scared, Suzie," said Henry as he and his sister approached.

In truth, she was as steady as anyone up there. "I'm not. I'm just..." She gulped, never pulling down her pink-accented D-Power. "Do you think I'll get to see Lopmon again?" she asked.

Henry opened his mouth but stopped himself. He pulled her in closer. "Yeah... I bet you will."

Behind them, his partner said, "Moumantai, Henry." Henry needed to hear it to keep from choking up.

As Marcus and Yoshi made their way to the line, Yushima took one last sip from the bottle before handing it to Keenan and joining them. Keenan looked around, shrugged and took a drink himself. He passed it off to the nearest person, which unfortunately was Tommy, and said, "Cheers."

Tommy scrutinized the shochu before setting it down. "Swore I'd cut down after those milkshakes." He shook his head and followed Keenan.

Jeremy and Zoe hugged and kissed one last time, holding hands as they walked up. Along the way, JP put an arm around her shoulder. The two raised their D-Tectors in unison, followed by Jeremy's teal Fusion Loader.

Watching his sister and now Jeremy join in, Ewan knew it was time, but couldn't bring himself to move. "But... this is real. We're really doing this..."

"Yes we are," said Mimi. "And we know it's real. But we know we need to." She extended a hand. He took it, squeezed it, and held it as they walked together.

As more and more joined in, the beams from the digivices grew brighter. Koichi had to turn away as he and Koji raised their D-Tectors. He found Jeri linking his arm around hers. He looked back. Takato was watching them, frowning as he pet Guilmon.

"Come on, Takato," Koichi said reassuringly. "It won't hurt. I've done it before." Takato sighed and approached them. Jeri stuck out her elbow, allowing Takato to link his arm as well. These were the hands holding their D-Powers.

The light was now so intense they could barely see Algomon. Only three remained. Christopher was still reluctant, until Angie grabbed his ear and pulled him toward the line. He grumbled, but gave in quickly. By now there were too many committed for him to ruin everything.

"What about Mikey?" Christopher asked as he and Angie reached the line.

"Don't worry about Mikey," Angie replied.

Mikey was still left behind, however, staring at the backs of all of the other heroes offering their lives for this world. He knew he could have prevented this, unforgivable as it would have been. But at the moment, it didn't matter. Every single one of them were saving the world. He could dwell on how he failed to save them all he wanted, but all that mattered in the end was him standing beside them. He exchanged a nod with Shoutmon and took the final few steps before hoisting the red Fusion Loader towards Algomon.

The moment he did, the light from the thirty-seven digivices flushed out everything in front of them. They couldn't see Algomon shake unnaturally and begin to break apart. His body didn't disintegrate into data so much as he dissolved, sublimating into a massive dark cloud. It still didn't appear against the wave of light. The cloud floated up, breaking apart into nothingness. In an instant, the light collapsed and disappeared, its job done. In that moment, every witness, human or Digimon, felt a rush of air escape their lungs as they fell to the ground. Their digivices fell out of their lifeless hands, raining down upon the dirt.

* * *

Suzie Wong couldn't tell if the tweeting she heard was in her head or actual sound. It wasn't until her arm twitched and hit somebody that she realized she was conscious. She popped up, her eyes shooting open. She was still in the grove. They all were. Only nobody else was moving.

This included Henry, laying motionless next to her. Terriermon was out too. Suzie shook her brother, whimpering, "Henry? Henry?" No response. It was the same with Kenta and MarineAngemon on her other side.

She popped to her feet, stumbling around in search of any life besides the distant birds. Her breathing grew heavy and frantic. She knew this didn't make sense and somebody else had to budge, but until they did she would be more frightened than she was committing to the sacrifice.

Finally, she saw TK sit up. "What the..." he mumbled. Suzie didn't answer. She didn't know. She just dove into his arms and cried. "What's going on?" Behind him, Patamon's wings fluttered.

"I don't know but... no one else is moving," she sobbed.

Then someone else did. Kari opened her eyes, saw TK awake, and smiled. It didn't last long when she turned and her brother wasn't. Her eyes widened as she popped up to her knees and desperately shook him. "Tai?! Tai?! Tai, please wake up!" TK released Suzie to hold her.

Suzie stood again, unsure what was happening. A groan from elsewhere sent her running. She fell to her knees and put her hands on Tommy's shoulders as he sat up, a hand to his head. "What's going on?" he asked.

"I don't know, but some of us are waking up!" she exclaimed. Tommy's lip quivered and he leaned forward to hug her.

It was a slow process, but more and more of them regained consciousness. Once Izzy woke and saw everyone who preceded him, and watching Keenan rise immediately after, he realized the pattern. He heard Kari's wailing, and squatted next to her. "He'll be fine. The youngest wake up first."

Kari stopped and looked at him, confused but calmer. TK raised an eyebrow. "But why are we waking up at all?"

"That's the question. It seems to have worked though. There's no sign of Algomon." Izzy stood and backed away uneasily as Mimi bent down to hug both Kari and TK.

As more woke up, the cries of relief grew louder. Izzy ignored them, walking down to where Algomon had fallen. Motimon was waiting for him. Gaomon was still out. Izzy hugged his partner, but with little feeling. He was fixated on the digiegg sitting alone in the grass. It was gold, with a green stripe spiraling around. As he watched, it floated into the air, then sped off above their heads.

"It worked..." Izzy mumbled. "Whatever we did, it worked."

"So what's the problem?" Motimon asked.

"Why are we still here?"

Izzy turned around. Tai was up now, as were Sora and Matt, both on their knees waiting for Joe and Nene. Tai saw Izzy and took a few steps towards him. He shrugged and asked, "So... are we good?"

"No..." Izzy shook his head. "Something's wrong with this. She specifically said everyone must surrender our lives?"

"Well... we're still here. So what's the problem? Algomon's gone?"

"Yes. His digiegg just floated away. Back to Primary Village I think. So that's encouraging." Reaching Tai, Izzy remained puzzled. "But there has to be a catch. Everyone's still in this world. Everyone's waking up. Everyone's Digimon are still here."

"With memories!" added Motimon.

"What did we surrender? What's changed?"

Nobody else was willing to worry about it. They were too happy to still be alive. By the time Yoshi and Lalamon woke up, everybody assumed that was the end of it. Yolei even found the bottle of shochu and passed it around to anybody who requested it, regardless of age.

It took a moment before Thomas realized the last man was taking longer: "Commander-General!"

Yushima still hadn't moved. Thomas's cry drew Marcus, Yoshi and Joe over, all four huddled over the old man. Slowly, their concern hushed the rest of the crowd from their exuberance.

"Please get up," said a voice from behind the four. They all turned around, startling Kamemon back into his shell.

While they were looking away from him, Yushima grunted and rubbed his chest. He opened his eyes halfway. He looked to be in pain. "Still here then?" he asked.

"Yes," Thomas said. "Although we're not sure why. Are you all right?"

As Marcus and Thomas helped him sit up, Yushima said, "Yes, my heart's just acting up a bit. Guess it can't handle all this excitement!"

"We'd better take a look at that back at the castle," Joe said.

Standing, Yushima nodded. "Sure, but I'll bet it's nothing serious. Just starts to happen when you get to my age." He paced around, patting his chest. "Strange though, it hadn't bothered me at all since I got here. I'd never felt better. Guess my ticker was overdue to start having problems again."

Thomas's eyes widened as he figured it out. He turned to Joe, who stared at Yushima with concern. Thomas stood and walked up to Izzy, standing nearby with Tai.

"I think I determined what Rhythm meant by us surrendering our lives," he said.

"What, from an old man having chest pains?" Tai asked.

"Precisely. I'll have to run a couple tests but suddenly having those issues again suggests that the ordinary decay genetically programmed into the human body is resuming. If confirmed, that would fall under the definition of surrendering our lives."

Tai stared back, certain this was supposed to be significant. He leaned towards Izzy and asked, "Translation?"

Izzy's stare was more sincere. It took him a few tries before he explained as simply as he could, the truth of their sacrifice: "We're aging."

* * *

Davis Motomiya tried not to fall asleep as the meeting stretched into its second hour. He had been told it would be short- just a quick chat to get a feel for the new structure and lay plans for tackling the big stuff later. Instead, the new council of the six team leaders gave Takuya a forum where he was on equal footing with Tai and he was determined to use it. He and Tai's arguments had looped at least three times and didn't seem to be stopping. Davis had stopped paying attention; now his focus was on making faces at Takato and trying to get him to interrupt the debate with inappropriate laughter.

Three weeks after Algomon's revival, nobody had fully processed the implications of everything that had happened. It felt like a monumental turning point in their lives in the world, at least until everyone woke up the next morning and found a castle to run, repairs to make and another corruption demanding response team action. Everyone settled back into their old routines. Things were surely different now, but how different were they supposed to act?

The collective effort it took to stop Algomon should have been a source of pride. Never since Davis's team arrived had so many had to work so hard to stop a threat so significant. But the reward, outside of the usual peace and quiet, was proof there was no way home and the knowledge that they would now grow older, wear down and eventually die in this world. Even when they weren't aging, death had been a possibility. There had been a couple close shaves in the past. Now they had to wrestle with the idea that the end was inevitable no matter what they did. For some, it had been the one bright spot of being trapped here.

It even took weeks to see evidence of the world being fixed. Just as Patamon and Gabumon were able to be reborn immediately after Algomon's death, the recovery wasn't instant. The next river shipment still had omissions and it would take days for Keenan to survey Primary Village. The uncertainty was real enough to be on the agenda for the meeting, although they all quickly agreed to wait it out before panicking.

Most of the meeting was settling what they'd be meeting about. As Tai's peace offering, the six of them would meet once in a while to make decisions regarding the overall direction and objectives of their society as a whole. Each of them was responsible for hearing and presenting the ideas and concerns of their old teammates. Everyone loved the idea, but actually putting it into practice proved tiresome. How often should they meet? What sort of major decisions would they be making and what was better left to the officers? How many of them needed to approve to get something through?

They did answer these questions. They'd meet once a month unless they all agreed nothing needed to be discussed. They had approval over the mission and objectives of the group as a whole and each of the fighting units. They could create new teams, appoint team captains and name or replace officers. For now, four of the six needed to approve any changes. By the time they settled all this, most of them were wiped.

Takuya was the exception. He still pushed to make Isthmian a permanent residence. Tai recognized it as strategically viable and sent a small team (actually just Christopher and his army) to guard it, but that wasn't enough: "Look, we don't have a reason to stir up any trouble. But it's still out there. What's the harm in looking around?"

"I don't know," Takato said. "Rika and Ryo got a good look when they rescued Kazu. It was pretty bad."

Tai nodded. "The harm is that we can't support two castles just to go exploring."

Takuya kept pushing. "We'll need to at some point! We've got a group coming next year, right? We're going to run out of room."

"We still don't know how many will show up," Mikey said. "We need to plan for everything."

"Can we vote, please? I'm hungry," moaned Marcus.

With a deep breath, Tai said, "Okay, who's in favor of establishing permanent residents at Isthmian?"

Takuya was the only one who raised his hand. Tai knocked on the table. "Okay, let's call it a day then. Good job, everyone."

Most of them, and at least one stomach, grumbled as they shuffled out. Takuya kept his head down, sneering the whole time.

"Well, that was pointless," Davis said once it was just him and Tai remaining. They returned to the main command room. Henry, Thomas and Kari stared at them. Davis just shrugged.

"I wouldn't say that," said Tai. "We agreed on a lot as far as how we're going to run this. It's almost like we started a whole new branch of government."

Davis stretched. "And it would have been great if we had written it down!" Tai cringed and made a note to have Kari or TK record the next meeting.

"So what about me?" Henry asked. "Are you giving Izzy his job back?"

Tai shook his head. "Nope. You're still here. Five to one."

"Hey Tai, I wanted to bring this up but Takuya ate up all the time." Davis wheeled his chair to Tai's desk and set his elbows on it. "So we're definitely not going home, right? Like we know that's not happening now?"

"I mean I guess anything's possible, but it sure looks like we're stuck here. We're done looking. That's what matters."

"Cool, so can we ditch that whole spoilers thing?" Tai tensed up. "I mean, if it doesn't matter whether or not you guys know what happens, let's just be out about it. I'm sick of pretending we don't know things about the future."

"I don't know, Davis. It's a little weird being told you did stuff you don't remember."

Davis grinned. "I don't know, I kinda dug Mikey's story about us taking out an army of Myotismons."

Tai looked across the room. "Thomas? Any thoughts?"

"Should be safe." Thomas turned to Tai and cracked a smile. "And I've heard what happens. It's very intriguing."

With a sigh, Tai reluctantly assented. "Okay, go for it."

"Okay, cool." Davis took a deep breath. "Because I've been dying to do this since I got here..."

Tai braced himself for whatever Davis had to say. But instead, Davis slid over to Henry and grinned eagerly. "Hey, so you guys had that cartoon about us, right? Did it say if I got my noodle cart?"

* * *

Koichi Kimura listened to Zoe test the microphones on the stage ahead of the night's concert and ticked another box on his mental checklist. The performers would still need to do a proper sound check, but as long as the equipment was set up and working, he was satisfied. With the castle politics and personal conflicts seemingly eased, the road was clear for another concert. Everyone needed help lifting themselves out of the malaise that followed after the Algomon incident.

He popped behind the stage and found Jeri unpacking a box. She smiled at him. "Everything sounds great!" He smiled back. "Should I leave these extra cords here or take it to JP?"

"Here's fine," Koichi replied. "They actually showed up then?"

She nodded. "First complete river order in more than a month. It's a load off my mind."

"That's great." He waited for her to stand, then leaned in for a kiss. When they pulled away, he asked, "Are you busy?"

"Swamped," she said, picking up a large envelope. "I have to run this upstairs."

She kissed him again and turned, only to find Takato watching them, frowning and with his eyes to the floor. Jeri stroked Takato's chin, kissed him on the cheek, and continued on to the keep.

Takato scratched his shoulder and walked up to Koichi. "Um... okay, maybe a little more discrete."

Koichi lowered his head. "Sorry. Still getting used to this."

"You're telling me..." Takato cleared his throat.

"But I'm glad we're trying. It's probably the best solution."

Takato nodded and walked away, eager to hit the bath after the exhausting meeting. This was just one more thing to soak out of his head.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Koichi asked, stopping him. He joined Takato, concern in his eyes. "I still can't tell."

Takato tilted his head towards the bath and started walking. Koichi joined him. Along the way, the tamer said, "Like I said, I'm trying to get used to it. It's kinda weird." With a sigh, he continued, "But you're right, it's probably the best way to go. Everybody's happy."

"Are you?"

After staring at Koichi for a long time, Takato smiled. "Yeah. You know, I am. I mean, seeing you two together is still weird, but thinking about it... it makes sense. I can understand why she turns to you." He paused for a moment. As he walked away, he added, "Guess you've always had this arrangement."

Koichi followed. "But Takato! I feel better now that you know about it. It means a lot to me. I hated keeping it a secret. From you, from the castle... I was sick of it. I know everyone's going to look at us funny but... they'll have to learn to accept it. I'm sick of hiding."

Stopping in front of the bath entrance, Takato held up a hand, a calm smile on his face. "No, no, you're right. And I really do think this can work. We just need to ease into it." Looking away and rubbing his neck, he chuckled. "Guess this is a good time to try it out since they won't let anybody, uh..."

Koichi chuckled back. "That's true. Maybe the three of us should sit down and talk about it once all that gets cleared up."

Takato nodded. "Hey, are you free? You wanna join me?"

"That sounds really nice, but I need to make sure everything's set up for tonight."

"Oh yeah. I'm really excited for that! I was kinda mad that I missed the last one."

Koichi smiled, but didn't follow it up. The conversation died, and he wasn't sure if he should just walk away. Instead, a thought came to him and, after some hesitation, shared it: "Uh, Takato? So if this ends up working out and everything... between the three of us..." He scratched his cheek. "You... you know what that might lead to, right?"

Takato blushed and looked straight up before answering, "Well... you know, I'm sure we can cross that bridge when we get there." He smiled at Koichi. "I mean, we're friends, right?"

* * *

Joe Kido found it hard to accept even as the evidence grew more and more irrefutable. Thomas did most of the actual research, but Joe understood enough of it to get the message: they were definitely aging.

"At this point, it's almost redundant continuing the research," Thomas said, looking up from the microscope at the small research station in the corner of the medical facility. "Our bodies are now functioning the same as they would in the human world."

"Et tu, Digital World? Never thought it would be capable of it," Joe muttered, shaking his head.

"Mine does that. Keenan and Marcus certainly aged in their years inside."

A knock on the door ended the conversation. Joe opened it and Suzie entered with a box half her size. She somehow got it on a table.

"I take it the river's working again?" Thomas asked.

"Yep, everything checked out!" Suzie said. She rooted through the box. "Feminine hygiene products and contraceptives."

Joe noticed her hand grab something out of the box. "Whatever you snuck in your pocket there, I hope it was from the first category." She stuck out her tongue.

Thomas inspected the box, nodding in satisfaction. "Good. The natives were getting restless."

"Hopefully it'll work until we have a more reliable solution. Because we are so not ready to deal with _that_ right now."

"But we will be someday, right?" Suzie asked, drawing both their heads over. "You're talking about babies, aren't you?"

"Yeah..." Joe grumbled. "Never thought I'd have to learn how to handle all that."

Thomas smiled. "I've already started reading up on it. It'll be a rewarding challenge. And likely integral to the long-term future of this world."

Joe pondered it for a moment. They had gotten so used to thinking of themselves as eternal prisoners that it was hard to wrap their heads around growing up here, having children, and passing the world on to a new generation. Yes, there would be new arrivals from new worlds, but the future, and their legacy, depended on their offspring.

Another knock struck these thoughts. Thomas opened the door and smiled as he threw it open. "Keenan, welcome back," he said as the boy stepped in. Falcomon stayed in the hallway. "So everything's good at Primary Village?"

"Much better," Keenan said, gasping when he saw Suzie. There was some uncertainty now as he gave his report to Thomas: "Everything looks fine now. Over-crowded even. Swanmon wanted me to stay and help."

"Why's it overcrowded?" Joe asked

"Backlog," Thomas answered. "In the weeks it malfunctioned, there was a lot of loose data swarming around. That may have caused the uptick in corruptions. Algomon's revival brought a lot of them back together, even digieggs that should have formed not long after he died."

Suzie's shoulders slumped. "Can you talk about this when I'm not here? I'm used to not having Lopmon around. You don't have to pretend there's a chance."

"Not pretending," said Keenan. He stepped aside and let Falcomon carry in a pale green digiegg. Suzie didn't know how to react at first. She looked up at Thomas, who smiled at her. Cautious, she walked up to Falcomon and set a hand on the egg. The moment she did, her eyes welled up. She knew it instantly.

"But... but how?" she sniffed, cradling Lopmon's digiegg in her arms. "In our world-"

"How it works in your world doesn't matter," Joe said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Here, Digimon get reborn. She really wanted to come back to you."

He led Suzie, still crying as she squeezed her partner, to one of the beds for some privacy. When he returned, Thomas was grinning. "I don't know why you're worried about the possibility of us having children. They couldn't ask for better parents."

* * *

Mimi Tachikawa was only on stage to provide guest vocals for one song, so she was going to milk it for all it was worth. While Nene was saddled with a guitar and could only sway within range of her microphone, Mimi roamed around bothering Matt, Yoshi and Ewan as they tried to play their instruments. Only the drummer humored her.

The crowd ate it up. As divisive as the first Midnight Machete concert ended up, it still fulfilled its purpose of boosting spirits for a night. Now that the rifts had been bandaged and the romantic intrigue seemed settled, nothing stopped them from delivering on their potential and making everyone believe the future could still be bright.

As Tai looked over the sea of raised arms and glowsticks, he knew it wasn't necessarily true. While the Isthmian revolt was over, it exposed a huge divide. As unified a front as they presented to stop Algomon, it was an illusion and would only last so long. No doubt the fault line would cause more tremors in time.

His own team, meanwhile, still had problems. It wasn't as bad as the months leading up to the Millenniummon fight, but it still bothered him. TK and Cody had put the knives away but were a long way from being DNA digivolution partners again. As news of Izzy's indiscretions spread, his reputation suffered. Tai heard more than a couple whispers of Izzy "keeping Mikey company." Given how deeply it involved Kari, Tai only had so much sympathy.

Sora had made her peace with Matt and Nene, but it didn't make them friends again. The two girls could make a joke at his expense or even share a secret or two, but actually spending time together, especially with Matt around, was still awkward.

At least she bobbed her head to the music with an amused smile on her face, Tai noted. After a song, she ducked out of the crowd for some water. She ended up right next to Tai. "You're actually getting into this," he said.

She looked at him, a little flustered. "Well... yeah, I guess I am." Sora watched Nene introduce the next song. "To be honest, his stuff back home wasn't the stuff I like to listen to." She raised her hands, suddenly defensive. "I mean I got what he was saying and appreciated that and all but-"

Tai nodded, stopping her. "No, no, I got you."

Sora looked over her shoulder at the stage. "This is a lot better. Nene and Ewan know what they're doing." She chuckled. "Plus the last song was totally about Mikey."

"I guess I'm just glad to see you're..." Tai searched for the word, but all he could come up with was "Okay."

Her smile vanished. As the next song started up and threatened to drown her out, she stepped closer to him and said, "It is what it is. I can't waste any more time waiting for him to show up. Especially now. I don't have forever."

"That's probably for the best," Tai said. He rubbed his lips together, nervous about continuing. "I mean... if you're really ready to move on..."

"I am," she insisted. Her eyebrows raised. "In fact, I'm actually on a date right now."

Tai leaned back. "What?! Who?! With Joe?"

Now she reacted in shock. "Joe?! What?" She looked back into the crowd. "I'm here with Henry."

"Henry?" Tai's eyes narrowed.

She faced Tai again. "Yeah. We were talking... he suggested it... here we are. And don't worry, I talked to Yolei." She shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe it'll turn into something. Maybe tomorrow we'll be laughing about how stupid the idea was." She grinned. "It's kind of fun not knowing."

Tai was at a loss for words, so he threw a hand out and said, "Well, best of luck then." She bowed her head and returned to the crowd, smiling at Henry as Biyomon flew from his arms to hers. Tai suddenly wasn't in a concert mood anymore.

He slipped out the front door, hoping the fresh air and the quieter courtyard would help. He couldn't be upset about Sora finally taking her life back. But it reminded him of how much of a mess his was. He had been on the verge of collapse leading up to the Isthmian team leaving. After the Algomon incident and its consequences, he was just tired.

Tai didn't want to leave his post; he was too leery of anyone who wanted to replace him. The new possibility that four of the other leaders could now vote him out of power gave him nightmares. He swore to himself he would take a vacation and disappear for a few days once everyone agreed on a path going forward. He just didn't know if that would ever happen.

"What?" Takuya asked. Tai hadn't noticed him leaning against the wall. He seemed annoyed at the intrusion, even if he was just staring at the castle gate. "Do you want me inside?"

"I don't care," Tai said, leaning on the wall on the other side of the doorway. He sort of did want Takuya away, only to be alone with his thoughts. But he didn't say it; Takuya probably felt the same way.

They didn't speak at first, each trying to find some solitude despite each other and the music bleeding over from the other side of the door. An entire song played before Takuya asked, with his voice calm and respectful, "Are we really going stay in this castle the rest of our lives?"

"I don't know," Tai answered. "Not right away. Not without a plan. And a reason."

"How about because it's not about surviving anymore?" Tai looked over. Takuya stared back at him. "We're here for good now. And we don't have forever to wait out our next move."

The two kept their eyes on each other. Tai had spent eleven years waiting for either the next bad thing to happen or the way out to present itself. The bad thing had come, and it took out their hope for escape. But it still left them at full strength in a secure space in a now-healthy world. The dangers were always present, but if their time in this word was both inevitable and finite, suddenly he had less reason to be afraid of them.

"We need to grow," Tai mumbled. "We need to make life safer, and easier, and better for the next teams that show up... and any future generation."

Takuya nodded along. "Part of that is making our corner of the world less dangerous. And the more people we have, the bigger our corner needs to be."

Tai sighed. "Six months," he said. Takuya narrowed his eyebrows. "Give me a plan we can start working on now, so that in six months you'll have a small team at Isthmian that isn't going to screw up our work here and won't be scraping by eating nothing but fish and digibytes. Get that to work and I might even let you take the hunters when they get here."

"What's the catch?" Takuya asked.

"You report to us- either Command or the six leaders. We'll... we can work that out. But as long as we're working together, you can be in charge over there."

After pondering for a moment, Takuya nodded. "I think that can work. Should I come up with something for next month's meeting?"

"Yeah. And talk to Thomas or someone for help. You know, some of the guys here actually know their stuff."

"Yeah... yeah, okay. I'll figure it out. I promise I can make this work." Takuya paused, then added, "Thanks."

Tai nodded. "You should head back in there. They're sounding pretty good."

Takuya eyed the door. "Yeah, I guess..." He snickered. "I mean, Nene is pretty hot in that dress. Definitely idol material."

Tai winked. "Careful, she's dating a friend of mine."

Takuya grinned back, flung the door open and headed inside. Tai stayed out, but watched the crowd from a distance. Everyone really was having a great time. Maybe it didn't have to be an illusion. Maybe things really could be better.

Tai closed the door again and looked back up at the stars. The doors blocked more of the vocals and other accompaniment, allowing Matt's bass line to stand out. While they still acted raw around each other, this was likely just stubbornness that would fade in time. The important thing was Matt, and TK, were finally back. They had a stable home and while there would always be little clashes, they got along again.

The one thing left for them to fight for was gone. Tai would never see the human world, or at least his human world, again. But maybe Takuya was on to something. Perhaps knowing for sure was a blessing. It was no longer about surviving or making the most of it until they fought their way out. With his team restored and the mysteries gone, they could build for a future here. In this future, they could grow out of the castle and plan a proper society in any direction they chose. Even if expanding to a second castle now proved unfeasible, who knew what a couple more years would bring? How about a generation? Maybe one day their children would even be able to bring order to the second continent.

Tai opened the door again and felt the energy inside. The music was fantastic, the atmosphere electric. Even if it was temporary now, everyone really did have a lot to be excited about. It would be hard, and heaven knew they wouldn't always get along. But, as Tai entered the castle as rejoined his comrades, he knew every one of them could look forward to achieving wonderful things in their lifetimes.

Most importantly, they had no reason to wait. They wouldn't be here forever.

 **The End**

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

Watching every season again through System Restore made me want to do a mass crossover. But rather than emphasize the big battle that unites everybody, I wanted more character conflict. I wanted them to fight, hook up, break up, be awful to each other, and at the end of the day still feel like the wonderful kids we remember. In many ways, the tight castle quarters turned this into a drama-filled high school AU... only in the Digital World because it's such an obvious setting. While the origin of the world was established very early on, this was a story that developed in stages. It wasn't until the big rescue in episode nine that the second half of the story started to crystallize, and even longer before the actual ending fell into place. The final two scenes weren't dreamed up until after the previous chapter was finished.

What was great about that was being able to roll tri. and Appmon into the story. The first six chapters were already up when tri. first aired, but thankfully the characterizations were compatible enough to roll everything in with only a few tweaks. Both tri. and Appmon even helped fill in missing details in the previous chapter. While I would have loved to work in more of the new characters, the representation I was able to provide helped make this feel like a story about the entire Digimon anime.

This chapter does run a bit longer than the previous ones. I could have trimmed it down, certainly not all of it was necessary, but I felt it was important to incorporate everybody into the ending. There are 37 human characters and every one of them has at least two lines in this chapter!

There's a subtle voice actor nod to Fullmetal Alchemist in the characters that are explicitly uncomfortable with bringing something back to life (the main duo in FMA learn this the hard way). Christopher and Matt (in tri.) share a dub voice with Ed from FMA. Turning to the Japanese version, Ken shares a voice with Ed... while Keenan/Ikuto shares a voice with his brother Al.

Shochu is a Japanese liquor that is both more popular in Japan than sake and less of a cliché. It sounds like pretty strong stuff.

Ken's "we're even now" line to Ryo is probably a reference to their first fight with Millenniummon in Zero Two. Yes, Ken used that moment against Ryo in Level 3 as well. I don't care.

More than a few people suggested the possibility of a polyamorous resolution to the Takato/Jeri/Koichi situation, and thankfully this is fanfiction and we can roll with that! This was one of the plots where I didn't know how it would unfold when I started writing but it quickly became clear that it would end up this way. At the same time, I felt it important to get across that both Takato and Koichi find the idea unorthodox and have to ease their way into it carefully. There's plenty of room for discomfort and it takes a lot of communication and trust to make it work.

For anyone who hasn't seen Data Squad, the idea of the characters aging in the Digital World may never have crossed your mind- either because you assumed it was impossible or assumed they already were. No other season specifies, and no matter whether you think they age or not it creates some interesting implications since Digital World time is so much faster than in the human world in Adventure, Frontier and Fusion while it's parallel in Zero Two, Tamers and Data Squad. I've heard comments that not aging is the real torture of this world and undoing it was certainly meant to provide relief.

Of course, that leads to the possibility of children! I have no idea how that would actually play out, particularly the Digimon/digivice mechanics, but it's an optimistic note to end on. Although their destiny is to remain in this world, they can live out otherwise normal lives here. Feel free to use your imagination to picture future children and grandchildren of the pairs of your choice and the kind of adventures they'd have living with no knowledge of life in the human world. And let me know if you want to borrow this world to write it!

Despite my affinity for it and the opportunity clearly present in the last scene, I had no intention of a Taiora ending. In fact, the initial plans for the second half called for a Sorato ending, with a different conflict breaking up Matt and Nene. This was before the idea of Nene's fusion failure, which was best resolved with her letting her determination shine. I'm also not trying to suggest Sora/Henry is going to happen; don't forget neither of their relationships in this story ended up working. I'm not a fan of distant future epilogues, so although Matt/Nene, Takato/Jeri/Koichi, Ken/Rika and Jeremy/Zoe are all technically endgame, I won't imply they'll last forever.

As for me, other than System Restore (which will be back in action soon for the fourth tri. movie), I'm up in the air writing-wise right now. I've had ideas for an OC season burning in my head for a long time, but I'm not sure if I want to turn that into a fic, find a collaborator that can help realize it through a different medium, or adapt it into an original story. I'm also not convinced I'm through with this world; maybe after tri.'s finished I'll want to come back to see the Hunters or Appmon crews brought into the fold. Odds are I'll also participate in the next Digimon Bang if it comes back. Either way, follow me on Twitter at firstagentarp and Tumblr at firstagent to keep in touch. Thanks again to everybody for reading and I hope to hear from you!

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